Backyard Chicken Carry Hidden Salmonella Summary

Many years ago, backyard chickens were commonplace throughout the United States of America – mainly for nutrition. During that time, backyard chickens were easy to take care of and a small number of them could feed a family with meat and eggs for a bargain. Years later, manufacturing food became the way of life and

Salmonella is a bacterial disease that occurs in the intestines, the signs and symptoms can be; fever, or other illnesses such as diarrhea and abdominal cramps. People typically get salmonella from contaminated foods, which seems to occur frequently from poultry and eggs (Nordqvist, 2016). This is just a basic look at salmonella though, next we need to look at the epidemiologic triad (host, agent, and environment) and see how each plays a role in a salmonella outbreak.

In my opinion, world wide should have free range hens so there are healthier hens and eggs resulting in less salmonella spread, if they were free range they would be less stressed and they would not be so close together which would cause fights. If they were free range they would be healthier, and their eggs would be healthier for humans to eat because it would not carry salmonella, and the environment would benefit in many ways. Also the costs of free range living would be distributed onto the consumers in many ways.

The USDA issued interim regulations that restricted the interstate sale and transportation of eggs and poultry from flocks to protect the community from salmonella- infected eggs. The USDA has to collects samples from the flock, and if any of the test came out positive and its movement in interstate commerce would be restricted. In 1990, salmonella outbreaks were traced to three houses owned by Rose Acre Farms. Because the “test flocks” tested positive, USDA officials removed and killed sixty hens from the

Foodborne illness, or food poisoning, happens everyday in the U.S. and it is estimated that 48 million people are affected by it every year. Of these 48 million, 128,000 end up in the hospital and 3000 of them die from foodborne pathogens (Tucker, 2014). Foodborne illnesses can be caused by biological, chemical, or physical contaminants. The biological contaminants consist of bacteria, viruses, parasites, and fungi. Chemical contaminants are pesticides, cleaning supplies, and toxic chemicals. Physical contaminations are dirt, glass, wood, splinters, stones, hair, jewelry, and metal shavings (Tucker, 2014). Salmonella, a bacterium, has been the most common reported cause of food poisoning. Salmonella is most commonly exposed to humans through animal feces and it is usually from animals that give us beef, poultry, and dairy products. People who do not wash their hands after being around animals can also transmit salmonella into our food. The symptoms of Salmonella are abdominal cramps, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and fever (Tucker, 2014). The symptoms will usually resolve on their own in healthy people but may become life threatening in those with compromised immune systems. In order to prevent Salmonellosis, raw eggs should be avoided, as well as undercooked meat, shellfish, and unpasteurized milk and juice (Tucker, 2014). It is also important to always practice hand hygiene before handling any uncooked food products. Escherichia Coli, otherwise known as E. coli, is

When these animals are taken to the slaughter house, their carcasses can become contaminated when come in contact with intestinal contents (http://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/foodborne-germs.html). Fruits and vegetables can easily become contaminated when water used to wash off suspected bacteria is contaminated with sewage. The most common form of Salmonella comes from eggs, which can become contaminated when a hens’ ovaries become infected, causing the pathogen to lay on the yolk before the shell is completely formed around the egg itself.

Gastrointestinal diseases are pervasive problem that is caused by ingestion of contaminated foods or water in which an extensive etiological agents known as enteric pathogen are present, [1]. Salmonella is one of the most opportunistic gram negative, facultative anaerobic food borne pathogens that represent a major health problem and a substantial cause of food poisoning[2]. Salmonellosis caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium) stance as the second most prevalent cause of acute gastroenteritis that affecting one million illnesses in the United States, with 19,000 hospitalizations and 380 deaths[3]. Infection begins with the ingestion of contaminated food or water then characterized by attachment of the bacteria by fimbriae or pili to cells lining the

However, according to Doyle, et al (2015), there has been reduction in the number of outbreaks and illnesses due to E.coli infections in the past 15 years. This is due to CDC mandate that clinicians conduct laboratory testing and reporting of microbial agents that cause illnesses. As a result, foods highly at risk of getting contaminated are being monitored, inclding natural foods that contain little or no antimicrobial agents (p. 254). Also, clinicians have taken more active role in educating people about ways to prevent or reduce foodborne diseases. Washing hands properly as well as changing cutting boards after handling raw poultry or meat is very important for food

Typhoid fever. One of the types of salmonella bacteria is known as salmonella typhi. Even if salmonella is not originally carried by chickens, infected food handlers might contaminate the food during preparation and an undercooked chicken can absorb the bacteria and spread the disease. Around 21.5 million cases of typhoid fever is recorded worldwide. Symptoms of typhoid fever include a very high fever, weakness, headache, stomach pain, and rash.

According to the new report released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention a salmonella outbreak happened in the US. The officials affirmed that people should not kiss or cuddle chicken since they risk getting salmonella infection.

There have been numerous times where I have been affected by Salmonella, so it was easy to swing towards Salmonella as the CBRN choice. Salmonella is found in everyday food products such as raw chicken, raw beef, raw fish, raw eggs and unpasteurized milk (foodsafety.gov). Salmonella can also be found on reptiles, amphibians, birds and even pet treats (foodsafety.gov). People will start to feel symptoms within four to seven days which include: nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, fever, headaches, dehydration and possibility blood in the stool (mayoclinic.gov).

Companies should to admit the potential danger of different salmonella’s strains and allow to add them to the list of adulterants. The video gave enough evidences that bacteria cause severe health issues and even death. Manufacturers also should stop to screen themselves behind the legislative system and start to act before the appearance of evidences like unopened pack of chicken with the strain of salmonella that caused an outbreak. Prompt response will help to prevent the development of long-term consequences and will show that the company really cares about its consumers. Poultry manufacturers can also provide funding for researches on salmonella treatment as one of the main sources of the

According to a piece by Paige M. Tomaselli, who practices law in the San Francisco Bay area, “In 2009 and 2010, eggs tainted with Salmonella were responsible for the most food-related illnesses” (Tomaselli). When the welfare of chickens is not considered it puts both humans and animals at risk. Salmonella infection can be nasty in humans, causing abdominal cramps, fever, and diarrhea. Tomaselli stated that in some factory farms, “The hens will come into contact with egg conveyer belts, exposing eggs to fecal bacteria. Dead birds are customarily left in and around cages with live hens and near eggs” (Tomaselli). A video released by the Humane Society of the United States or HSUS showed proof of this. In the video hens at the Cal-maine factory where stuffed into small cages that made their feet bleed. Dead hens and feces were everywhere. This is the perfect environment for many foodborne illnesses to manifest. If the animals were treated better, there might not have been so many outbreaks. This would have saved countless humans from

Contaminated poultry is a big concern to society as it poses a serious risk for human health. An estimated 4 million illnesses and 3,000 deaths per year (based on information provided by the United States Department of Agriculture) due to contaminated poultry. This scare has caused all poultry to be vaccinated to prevent harmful pathogens to reach and infect humans.

Backyard poultry rearing also finds an important role to raise indigenous birds free of stress and harmful residues (Khandekar 2003, Mandal et al. 2006).