§ Mrs. GormanTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has on the pasteurisation of eggs from salmonella enteritidis infected flocks in the United States of America; and whether he has any information on the incidence of food poisoning from pasteurised eggs from salmonella enteritidis infected flocks in the United States of America.
§ Mr. MacleanVery little information has been published on either pasteurisation of eggs from infected flocks or the incidence of food poisoning from pasteurised egg produced from eggs from infected flocks in the United States of America.
§ Mrs. GormanTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will describe the procedure through which pasteurisation of eggs from infected flocks can encourage cross-contamination in circumstances where raw liquid egg is commonly contaminated by salmonella.
§ Mr. MacleanThe risk of cross-contamination exists in any food processing plant and therefore the use of contaminated raw materials should be avoided as far as possible. The possible routes of contamination will depend on several factors, including plant design, hygiene procedures etc.