The section provides information and advice about food poisoning and infectious diseases.
Over 50,000 cases of bacterial food poisoning are reported to doctors in England and Wales each year.
Many more go unreported - despite the fact it is a legal requirement to notify cases and suspected cases of food poisoning to Local Authorities.
Food poisoning is an illness brought on by the consumption of contaminated food of which the symptoms are diarrhoea, vomiting, nausea and abdominal pain.
These symptoms usually occur within 1 to 7 days.
Those bacteria most often implicated in cases of food poisoning are
- Salmonella
- Campylobacter
- Giardia Lamblia
- Escherichia coli (E.Coli)
- Cryptosporidium
These bacteria may come from cross contamination from raw foods, from insects, rodents, birds or animals, dust, soil, refuse and waste food or the food handler.
Infectious diseases such as Meningitis, Dysentry, Typhoid Fever and Hepatitis must be notified to the Food Safety Section.
The subsequent action is dependent upon the disease and the categories of people involved i.e. food handler, young child or elderly person.
All cases of food poisoning and infectious diseases that are reported to food safety are investigated to try and establish the cause of the problem and to prevent the possible spread of the illness.
Food handlers have a legal duty to report to their employer any illness or skin infection which could be passed on to others through food.
The employer must then decide if this persons presents a risk to customers through their normal food handling duties, and, if so should relieve that person from those duties until they have recovered.
