HC Deb 21 December 1988 vol 144 c289W
Mr. Martyn Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many cases of human salmonella infections were reported in Wales in each of the last three years; and how many were directly attributed to fresh hens' eggs.

Mr. Peter Walker

The number of cases of salmonellosis in Wales is not available, but data on the number of reports of salmonellosis in Wales are given in the following table. These data include both cases and excretors. Information on how many of these reports were directly attributed to fresh hens' eggs is not available. However, it is known that, in 1988 to the end of October, there were in Wales five outbreaks of salmonellosis involving 44 people in which the likely source of infection was eggs:

Laboratory Reports of Salmonellosis from Wales to the Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre
Year Total Reports
1985 450
1986 690
1987 746

Mr. Gareth Wardell

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what investigations have been carried out by the public health laboratory service into outbreaks of salmonella enteriditis in Wales; how many hen eggs were sampled; and what were the conclusions.

Mr. Grist

[holding answer 20 December 1988]: The public health laboratory service has investigated three outbreaks of salmonella enteritidis phage type 4 in Wales during 1988. On each occasion foods containing shell eggs from hens were implicated as the vehicle of infection. In the one case where the source of supply could be identified 18 eggs were sampled, but the organism was not isolated.

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