So should anyone really be using raw eggs?
Eggs will be safe for consumption if they are clean, cool and not cracked, even if they are raw. However, even a slight crack that cannot be seen, will allow bacteria to get in and make the raw egg unsafe for human consumption.
These eggs should never be used and consumed raw. They must always be cooked to at least 60C to ensure that all Salmonella and other bacteria have been killed.
Unfortunately there are some recipes that call for raw eggs, including raw egg mayonnaise. It was this product that was the source of the 162 people who became ill (15 were hospitalised) after eating at a restaurant in Canberra recently.
The investigation by the ACT Health has identified that it was the raw eggs in the used in the mayonnaise which were the source of the Salmonella species responsible for this food poisoning outbreak.
If a restaurant or other food business knows that the eggs they have received are cracked, they must ensure that these are cooked before serving. The problem is that a very small crack which is not obvious to the eye may be in an egg, and we would not know.
Therefore, the ACT Chief Health Officer, Dr Paul Kelly has called on all restaurants to not make and sell raw egg products, due to the high and increased risk of food poisoning.
Dr Kelly said to an ACT Legislative Assembly hearing about the recent outbreak; “Whilst most eggs are quite safe every so often there’s one that isn’t. In a busy restaurant whereby this particular mayonnaise was being made in six-litre lots using up to 30 eggs at a time, you start to increase your risk of getting a bad egg. Eventually you are going to get a bad egg and if you serve raw egg products in your restaurant then you’re dicing with death.”
This outbreak is not the only one in recent Australian history that has been due to raw egg mayonnaise with a similar outbreak in Albury – Wodonga a few years ago, so this call by Dr Kelly should echo around the country.
This article was written by Rachelle Williams, The Green Food Safety Coach