Poultry is the most common food source of food poisoning in the U.K., according to a new report from the Food Standards Agency (FSA). And, because it is often found in chicken, Campylobacter is the most common foodborne pathogen sickening at least 280,000 people in the U.K. each year.
‘These findings will help the FSA to target its resources more effectively in tackling food poisoning. They confirm that the FSA is right to put campylobacter at the top of its priority list. It is the biggest food safety problem we have and more needs to be done to tackle it,” said Professor Sarah O’Brien, the study’s lead researcher from the University of Liverpool.
Second after Campylobacter was Clostridium perfringens with 80,000 cases. Norovirus was third with an estimated 74,000 cases. Although it was not one of the top three pathogens in terms of overall volume of cases, Salmonella, was found to cause the most hospitalizations with about 2,500 each year.
For food sources, after poultry was produce with an estimated 48,000 cases. Beef and lamb were third an estimated 43,000 cases.
The study found that a known pathogen is only identifiable in about half of all reported food poisoning cases in the U.K. each year, or in about 500,000 cases. Most of them are attributable to just 13 pathogens.
