Don't eat raw turkey or put anything that has touched raw turkey near your mouth. (Photo:… [+] Shutterstock)
And now we are talking turkey. Raw turkey and live turkeys seem to be the source of yet another Salmonella outbreak in 2018. This time Salmonella Reading is the culprit. As of July 19, 2018, the outbreak has already sickened at least 90 people in 26 states, resulting in 40 hospitalizations, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Unless you are a coyote, you may be saying, “but I don't eat raw turkey or live turkeys.” That's probably why the CDC “is not advising that consumers avoid eating properly cooked turkey products, or that retailers stop selling raw turkey products.”
Instead, the CDC is re-emphasizing the following standard poultry safety steps:
- Wash your hands. When is this not a recommendation? You should do this frequently and thoroughly especially before and after preparing and eating food, touching animals, and changing diapers. Oh, and please don't change diapers while preparing food.
- Cook raw turkey thoroughly. Before you gobble gobble turkey cook it through and through. This means reaching an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Don’t spread germs from raw turkey around food preparation areas. Thoroughly wash or dispose of anything else that touches raw turkey. That means counter tops, cutting boards, dishware, utensils, and anything that you use to wrap the turkey. Note that dressing a turkey does not mean putting clothes on it.
- Don't feed raw turkey to pets. A dog with diarrhea ain't a pretty sight. Plus your pet may end up smearing the raw turkey elsewhere.
Again, none of these recommendations are new or specifically designed just for an outbreak situation. Once the outbreak abates, don't revert to eating raw turkey-sicles or licking turkey cutting boards clean. Essentially the outbreak is a reminder to be careful with raw turkey.
Does it seem like 2018 is the year of diarrhea for multiple reasons? Even though we are only a few weeks past the mid-point of 2018, you could already have quite a meal or even a buffet with all the different food items on the CDC's list of Salmonella outbreaks. Take a look at the 10 outbreaks so far linked to food:
- Raw Turkey Products – Salmonella Infections
- Hy-vee Spring Pasta Salad – Salmonella Sandiego
- Kellogg’s Honey Smacks Cereal – Salmonella Mbandaka
- Pre-Cut Melon – Salmonella Adelaide
- Shell Eggs – Salmonella Braenderup
- Dried Coconut – Salmonella Typhimurium
- Chicken Salad – Salmonella Typhimurium
- Kratom – Salmonella I 4,[5],12:b:-
- Raw Sprouts – Salmonella Montevideo
- Frozen Shredded Coconut – Salmonella I 4,[5],12:b:- and Salmonella Newport
Here is a CBS Minnesota report on the outbreak:
And here are the 2 outbreaks linked to animals:
- Live Poultry in Backyard Flocks – Salmonella Infections
- Pet Guinea Pigs – Salmonella Enteritidis
That's already a total of 12.
