 |
Food Safety and Inspection
Service United States Department of Agriculture Washington, D.C. 20250-3700 |
|
Food Safety and Inspection
Service United States Department of Agriculture Washington, D.C. 20250-3700 |
FSIS.-Media
Communications Office
(202) 720-9113; FAX: (202) 690-0460
Contact: Jacque Knight
Editor's Note: Due to an updated analysis of statistics used in preparation of the final report on the Salmonella Enteritidis Risk Assessment in Shell Eggs and Egg Products, the number of human illnesses resulting from the consumption of eggs should read 661,633. (Paragraph five, line three).
EAST LANSING, MI, June 4, 1998 (Revised June 9, 1998) --The US Department of Agriculture today announced the completion of a report to help food safety experts determine the most effective ways to reduce the risk of foodborne illness due to eggs.
"The Salmonella Enteritidis risk assessment report is a major development in the Administration's multi-faceted farm to table strategy necessary to address today's complex food safety problems," said Catherine Woteki, USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety in a speech today at Michigan State University. Salmonella enteritidis is one of the most commonly reported causes of bacterial foodborne illness in the United States.
"We now have a farm to table computer model program with which we can identify the interventions that provide the best return in terms of public health protection, " Woteki said. "We have learned from this exercise that a broadly based policy is more likely to be effective than a policy directed solely at one area of the egg production to consumption chain."
The Food Safety and Inspection Service Salmonella Enteritidis Risk Assessment Team applied risk assessment formulas to five modules or areas of concern: Egg Production, Shell Eggs, Egg Products, Preparation and Consumption, and Public Health.
Using available data and risk assessment techniques available from government, industry and academic sources, the USDA report estimated that 2.3 million of 46.8 billion shell eggs produced each year in the United States are infected with SE, resulting in an estimated 883,705 human SE cases . About 20 percent of the population was considered to be at increased risk for the human illness of salmonellosis because they are infants, elderly, transplant patients, pregnant women, or individuals with certain chronic diseases.
Woteki said USDA will use the results of its Salmonella Enteritidis report to identify and evaluate future policies and practices that could reduce the risks associated with consuming shell eggs and egg products contaminated with the bacterium. USDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have noted increasing numbers of Salmonella Enteritidis related illnesses since 1976 despite a variety of industry and government initiatives underway to address the problem, Woteki said.
The USDA food safety official said the risk assessment model for Salmonella Enteritidis will make it possible for risk managers to predict the effects of possible interventions and determine which ones provide the best and most economic public health protection. USDA and the Food and Drug Administration published an advanced notice for proposed rulemaking on May 18 that asked for public comment on plans to implement a comprehensive, farm to-table strategy to decrease the food safety risks associated with shell eggs. The public comment period will end Aug.17.
Woteki also stressed the importance of communication about risk assessment.
"It is important to communicate the risks of foodborne illness from Salmonella Enteritidis in shell eggs and egg products in a proper context and helpful manner, with a well-thought-out and consistent message," said Woteki, the top USDA food safety official. USDA conducts a variety of continuing food safety education programs and maintains a hotline to provide information to more than 120,000 callers each year.
The USDA Salmonella Enteritidis Risk Assessment was conducted by a multi-disciplinary team with members from government and academia. The team was led by Dr. Roberta Morales under contract to USDA. USDA agencies that participated included the Agricultural Research Service, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, the Economic Research Service, the Agricultural Marketing Service, and the Office of Risk Assessment and Cost-Benefit Analysis.
The scientists who completed the risk assessment will describe the process and results at a two-hour Risk Forum to be held on Friday June 12 at 10 o'clock a.m. in the USDA's Jefferson Auditorium in Washington, D.C.
For Further Information, Contact:
FSIS Congressional and Public Affairs Staff
Phone: (202) 720-9113
Fax: (202) 690-0460