Sometimes it takes a lucky break.

Not all food poisoning outbreaks can be traced to a particular source or cause, regardless of how much work is done by authotities. Sometimes the cause or is found through a lucky break.
That’s what happened this year in the massive investigation into the source of the first Salmonella enteritidis (SE) outbreak in Australian history.
This species of Salmonella is different and more frightening than any other because it actually gets into the egg during it’s formation in the hen. Other Salmonella specieis can be removed because they are on thye outside of the shell, SE cannot.
This is the first time SE has caused illness in this country, with nearly 200 confirmed cases, so it was essential that the source be found and found quickly to, hopefully, find a way to ensure that this is the only outbreak.
Health departments across the country have to rely on the memory of those who have been ill to remember what they have eaten and drunk and where from for anything up to a week. Most of us cannot remember what we had for dinner two nights ago, so getting a clear list of all foods eaten in a week can be challenging.
This obviously makes determining a source for food poisoning outbreaks very difficult.
So investigators have to use other methoids and sometimes it can be about asking questions that may not seem logical, and sometimes it can be someone remembering something they may think is unimportant.
That is what happened with the SE outbreak. One of those who had been sick remembered that they had a meringue in their freezer which had been left over from the time they became sick.
Investigators took it away and tested it, and found the exact strain of SE which had been involved in the outbreak. Using the traceability of the meringue manufacturer, the investigators were able to work out exactly where the eggs had come from.
With testing of that farm, they were able to identify the presence of SE there.
As a result of this lucky break, the outbreak source had finally been identified. It has resulted in one property in Victoria and 13 in NSW involved and more than half-a-million birds having been culled at a cost of $10 million.
This bacteria can be found in dust and dirt and on vehicles, as well as on the skin of rodents and wild birds. It can easily spread in the wind. It can live in the environment for up to two years, and can survive and multiply without a host.
In other words, it is a major potential problem for egg farms.
The only prevention is outstanding biosecurity to stop it getting onto the farm in the first place.
As a result of this outbreak the egg industry is in a state of major change as methods are adopted by egg farms across the country to implement and mange their biosecurity.
The aim of every food poisoning investigation is not only to identify the source or cause but, more importantly, to put actions in place to stop a future outbreak.
With that one lucky break, this investigation has indeed met this aim and we are all safer for it.