Raw poultry
meat and poultry eggs may be contaminated by bacteria or
viruses such as salmonellas or avian flu virus. The mainstay
of prevention lies with thorough cooking, which can kill
bacteria and viruses in food. According to the World Health
Organization, there is no evidence that properly cooked
poultry or eggs can be a source of infection. Therefore,
the risk of contracting avian flu could be reduced by thorough
cooking of poultry meat and poultry eggs.
As a general precautionary measure, the public are advised
to observe good personal, food and environmental hygiene
at all times. The following safety tips are useful:
Purchase
Avoid touching chickens or their faeces when buying
live chickens. Do not blow their vent.
Handling
After handling live poultry, poultry products or
eggs, wash hands thoroughly with soap or liquid cleanser.
Clean thoroughly all working surfaces, utensils and equipments
that have been used for handling poultry products or eggs.
Use separate knives and chopping boards to handle
raw food and ready-to-eat food.
Keep raw poultry meat in well covered container
and then store it in the lower compartment of refrigerator.
Keep ready-to-eat and cooked food in the upper compartment
to avoid cross-contamination.
Wash eggs (with household detergent if required)
if they are soiled with faecal matter or stained with dirt.
Washed eggs should be consumed immediately.
Avoid consuming eggs with cracked shell as they
are prone to be contaminated.
Consumption
Do not use raw or undercooked eggs for preparation
of food that will not be cooked further.
Do not eat raw eggs or dip cooked food into any mixed
sauce of raw eggs. Cook eggs thoroughly until the white
and the yolk become firm.
Cook poultry thoroughly before consumption. The centre
of poultry meat should reach 70oC continuously for at
least two minutes.
If there are pinkish juices running from the cooked
poultry or the middle parts of the bones are still red
in colour, cook the poultry again until fully done.
Last
revision date: 10-02-2006