Nearly three-quarters of supermarket chickens are contaminated with the potentially deadly bug campylobacter, according to a year-long study by the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
The watchdog is now putting pressure on supermarkets to take action after finding that all the major retailers failed to reach industry targets for reducing rates of campylobacter.
Some 19 per cent of the contaminated chickens were found to contain the highest rate of the bug, which is responsible for an estimated 280,000 cases of food poisoning a year.
The FSA tests found that Asda had the highest rate of contamination in its fresh whole chickens at 80 per cent, followed by the Co-op with 78 per cent, Morrisons with 76 per cent, Waitrose with 74 per cent and Tesco and Marks and Spencer with 67 per cent.
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campylobacter the deadly chicken bug
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This is really scary. I am always super careful when handling, cooking, and storing chicken. Is it possible to avoid getting ill from campylobacter through good hygiene practices and thorough cooking?
I agree it is scary, especially as fresh chicken is an affordable and generally healthy choice for so many people. The good news is that this bug can't survive if you cook the chicken properly.
Of course you have to be careful about storing it before cooking too - lots of people don't realise that raw meat and foods should be stored underneath cooked items in the fridge.
Of course you have to be careful about storing it before cooking too - lots of people don't realise that raw meat and foods should be stored underneath cooked items in the fridge.