Salmonella Is in the Air

Published on Wednesday, March 28, 2007, by The CHOW Editorial Team / Edit Post

Whether it’s at an Easter celebration, Passover brunch, Zoroastrian No Ruz party, or Wiccan Ostara event, someone soon is going to hand you an egg. Is this the culinary equivalent of a loaded gun? Here’s our report.

What’s so dangerous about raw eggs?
The yolk might contain salmonella, a bacterium that’s found in the intestinal tract of animals, birds, reptiles, insects, and people. And in chicken ovaries, which is how it gets into yolks.

How serious is salmonella?
Not extremely, unless you’re a kid, elderly, or have immune system problems. The USDA estimates that 1.3 million people become infected a year, with 600 fatalities.

How often do you get bad eggs?
One in every 10,000.

What’s the biggest risk?
Brunch. When restaurants crack a bunch of eggs for French toast or scrambles, they could be creating food-poisoning petri dishes. The more eggs you pool, the greater the risk you’ll get a bad one. Then add the fact that salmonella grows at the same temperature as most commercial kitchens (95 degrees). “So the longer time you keep [the eggs] out in the roasting pan or whatever, the greater opportunity for the numbers to get to the levels that will make people sick,” says Richard Vergili, a professor at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York.

Is it true that if you wash the eggshells, you’re safe?
No. Your eggs are already carefully washed and sanitized; the USDA requires it. They’re also coated with a tasteless, natural mineral oil to protect them.

Pasteurized eggs seem like a solution. Do they taste funny?
No, they taste the same. They might look and act a little different, however. They’ve been slowly heated to kill bacteria, including salmonella, so the whites are slightly opaque. And it takes eight times as long to whip up the whites.

ALLQ&A
POST A COMMENT |7 Comments

COMMENT

  • Unfortunately, the data that states what percentage of salmonella come from poultry, meat, seafood (and produce, the biggest culprit is not even on the list!) are 11 and 14 years old.

  • maria lorraine-
    here's another link to the USDA source: http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/FoodBorneIllness/salmAssumptionDescriptions.asp#cases

  • Call me wrong, call me surprised, call me edified:

    The incidence is higher than what was reported above:
    “2 to 4 million cases of salmonellosis occur in the U.S. annually.”
    From CDC at http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~mow/chap1.html

    But here’s the most important question:
    What’s the number of salmonella infections caused by EGGS?

    Turns out it’s not eggs that causes salmonella most often:

    ...+READ

    Call me wrong, call me surprised, call me edified:

    The incidence is higher than what was reported above:
    “2 to 4 million cases of salmonellosis occur in the U.S. annually.”
    From CDC at http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~mow/chap1.html

    But here’s the most important question:
    What’s the number of salmonella infections caused by EGGS?

    Turns out it’s not eggs that causes salmonella most often:

    “Fruits, Veggies Now Linked to Most Major Salmonella Cases…”
    “Nov. 23, 2005 – In an analysis that raises more questions about the safety of food-processing and food-handling regulations in the United States, a public-health advocacy organization this week revealed that the most widespread and dangerous Salmonella outbreaks in the nation are now being caused by produce that has come in contact with byproducts of the meat, poultry and fishing industries.
    According to data compiled by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a health and food-safety advocacy group, produce-associated Salmonella outbreaks have been traced to lettuce, melons, sprouts, tomatoes and other fruits and vegetables.”
    http://newstandardnews.net/content/index.cfm/items/2627

    More data is needed. Let’s not blame eggs for most salmonella. Look to your produce basket first.-COLLAPSE

  • I'm sorry, would you please check your facts about the 1.3 million incidences of salmonella?

    Just checked the USDA site,
    which uses the CDC data (FoodNet) and their number is "6,471 cases" for 2005. Your number is different *by a factor of 200.*

    CDC data at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5514a2.htm

    Please check and revise, or cite the source of your 1.3 million figure.

    ...+READ

    I'm sorry, would you please check your facts about the 1.3 million incidences of salmonella?

    Just checked the USDA site,
    which uses the CDC data (FoodNet) and their number is "6,471 cases" for 2005. Your number is different *by a factor of 200.*

    CDC data at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5514a2.htm

    Please check and revise, or cite the source of your 1.3 million figure.

    You might also research the incidence of salmonella as broken out by east of the Mississippi River vs. west. According to Lawrence Pong, principal inspector and manager of training for San Francisco's Department of Public Health, the West has had very little incidence of salmonella since the late 1980s.

    I need to update my own research on this,
    but I don't wish for Chowhound to unnecessarily alarm CH egg-eaters, and,
    *of course* I want what's written here to be accurate and truthful.-COLLAPSE

  • My parents used to own a neighborhood Smoothie shop in Mexico City during the 1970s... the bulk of their customers were repeat business... and as some of you might know... raw eggs are very popular in smoothies there (in addition to the winter tradition of slurping down a shot of raw egg & Sherry)... and they never knew of a single case. I also grew up having raw egg smoothies (I estimate I've...+READ

    My parents used to own a neighborhood Smoothie shop in Mexico City during the 1970s... the bulk of their customers were repeat business... and as some of you might know... raw eggs are very popular in smoothies there (in addition to the winter tradition of slurping down a shot of raw egg & Sherry)... and they never knew of a single case. I also grew up having raw egg smoothies (I estimate I've probably have had about 6,000 raw eggs in my life... not a single problem).... I guess I shouldn't try for another 4,000?-COLLAPSE

  • You forgot to mention that cooking the eggs kills the bacteria.

    Also, the salmonella is present because the chicken "farms" are so filthy. I find it completely unacceptable that we can no longer trust raw eggs. And don't get me started on beef.

  • Hollandaise sauce is a particular culprit during brunch. If the raw eggs are containminanted, lots of people can fall in from a single batch. It's not fun.