Mouldy pie among food complaints

COMPLIANCE: Masterton has had a small number of food safety complaints in three years.PHOTO/FILE

An allergic reaction to mislabelled sushi and a mouldy pie were among a handful of Masterton-based food safety complaints made to the Ministry of Primary Industries in the past three years.

An official warning was given to one premises for selling products past use-by dates. Others were sent educational letters, as was the case with the mouldy pie. The sushi seller identified the problem and rectified it.

It's not just commercial premises with issues - nearly half of food-borne illnesses in New Zealand were due to food handling, preparation or storage in the home, according to the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI).

Every year, about 200,000 people experienced a food-borne illness, MPI said.

Masterton District Council spokesman Sam Rossiter-Stead said the deaths of 53 people and sicknesses of a further 4000 from contaminated salad sprouts in Europe in 2011, and the one-in-six Americans who suffered from food poisoning every year showed New Zealand was "pretty good by comparison".

The 12 Masterton food operators who were recently given food safety excellence awards by council health officers would stack up against any operators in New Zealand. The 15 merit award recipients were likewise well above compliance standards, Mr Rossiter-Stead said.

"We have bylaw power to close businesses where imminent risk is identified, but this power has not been used since it was introduced in 2012," he said.

Food-borne illnesses could be prevented by using safe water and cooked materials, separating raw and cooked foods, cooking and storing foods for appropriate lengths of time and at appropriate temperatures, and preventing contaminating food with pathogens spread from people, pets and pests.

People should raise food safety issues with the person who supplied the food, the council, the Wairarapa District Health Board or MPI, he said.

MPI compliance operations manager Gary Orr said New Zealand had 40,000 regulated food businesses and there were serious consequences if laws, standards or rules were not met.

"MPI can suspend the operations of a business or close it down, and can also impose fines, recall food products and issue formal public communications about food safety issues to protect consumers," he said.

Consumers needed to read labels carefully, report products sold past their used-by dates and adhere to basic food safety rules at home, he said.

"If food isn't prepared and handled safely, it's easy for people to get food poisoning. What's more, warmer temperatures over summer provide the ideal conditions for bacteria to grow.

"Many food-borne illnesses can be avoided by remembering simple food safety practices, like washing hands before and after handling foods and thoroughly cleaning chopping boards and utensils."

MPI also urged people to refrain from buying illegal home-kill meat for their Christmas roast. Home-kill meat was only legal for the animal's owner, their immediate family and household, and those of their farm staff to eat.

"When meat isn't processed hygienically and kept properly chilled there is potential for contamination and bacteria such as campylobacter, salmonella and E coli that can make people seriously sick," Mr Orr said.

"Getting hit with an illness like that isn't worth the price of cheap meat."

- Food safety complaints can be passed to the consumer helpline on 0800 693 721. NZME