Not only was 47 percent of the meat tested by researchers contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus, or staph, but more than half of the bacteria was antibiotic resistant. Which if passed on to humans can cause any number of dangerous diseases.
Researchers at TGen, the non-profit Translational Genomics Institute, tested 136 samples of meat, chicken, pork and turkey across 80 brands and 26 retail grocery stores in five different cities. So this contamination is clearly not limited to a specific area.
DNA testing shows that the animals were the source of the antibiotic resistant bacteria, which calls into question many industrialized farming techniques which rely on giving livestock steady doses of antibiotics. This creates a perfect breeding ground for bacteria to mutate into an antibiotic resistant strain.
“For the first time, we know how much of our meat and poultry is contaminated with antibiotic-resistant Staph, and it is substantial,” said Lance B. Price, Ph.D., senior author of the study and Director of TGen’s Center for Food Microbiology and Environmental Health.
“The fact that drug-resistant S. aureus was so prevalent, and likely came from the food animals themselves, is troubling, and demands attention to how antibiotics are used in food-animal production today,” Dr. Price said.
Cooking meats thoroughly kills any bacteria, but improper food handling and cross contamination are a real threat.
>>6 Easy Ways To Prevent Food Poisoning
Photo by: SpecialKRB
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