New Programme To Protect The Public From Salmonella

Main Category: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses
Also Included In: Nutrition / Diet;  Water - Air Quality / Agriculture
Article Date: 26 Mar 2008 - 3:00 PDT

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Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones has announced that a national programme to protect public health from Salmonella in poultry laying flocks of domestic fowl is due to come into force this month (March 2008). The programme will include updating and enhancing existing controls to reduce the number of cases in poultry by 10% annually.

Ms Jones said: "The proposed regulations will provide a framework for the National Control Programme (NCP) that details the phases of production which sampling and testing for the Salmonellas must cover.

"The programme will set a target for an annual reduction of at least 10% in the number of positive adult laying flocks, compared with the previous year. The starting baseline in Wales and for the rest of the UK, will be 8% prevalence of Salmonella enteritidis and Salmonella typhimurium serotypes.

"The results of nationwide survey of commercial laying flocks carried out in 2004 - 2005 showed that around 8% of layer flock holdings in the United Kingdom (UK) were infected with Salmonella enteritidis or Salmonella typhimurium. This demonstrates excellent progress of industry led initiatives to reduce Salmonella prevalence in laying flocks. However, work still needs to be done to reduce this level further and minimise the possible impact of the heat treatment requirement on producers. The NCP will enable the laying flocks sector to build on its success in the protection of human health and benefit from producers across the EU applying approaches that are consistent and comparable."

Notes

Implementation of a National Control Programme (NCP) for the monitoring and control of Salmonella in laying flocks will be enforced by the introduction of The Control of Salmonella in Poultry (Wales) Regulations 2008.

The NCP is intended to reduce the prevalence of Salmonella Enteritidis and Salmonella Typhimurium in laying flocks for the protection of human health. It will be brought into force in 2008 to comply with the requirements of EU Regulations 2160/2003 and 1168/2006.

The NCP is intended to ensure that coherent action to reduce Salmonellas of human health significance is taken across the Community and that information on Salmonella status in Member States can be compared more easily.

The NCP will require operators to collect samples for Salmonella testing, from day old layer chicks coming onto the farm and then from pullets 2 weeks before transfer to the layer house. It also requires that laying flocks be sampled every 15 weeks during production. The samples have to be submitted to an approved laboratory for examination for Salmonella. For holdings with over 1,000 birds there is the additional requirement that one flock a year should be sampled and tested under the control of the Competent Authority to verify the achievement of the Salmonella reduction target.

Under the same legislation there will be a requirement, from 1 January 2009 for eggs going for human consumption from flocks infected with Salmonella Enteritidis or Salmonella Typhimurium to undergo heat treatment to eliminate Salmonella; i.e., sale of fresh shell eggs from these flocks will not be permitted. In addition from November 2007 this requirement will apply to flocks when the eggs from the flock are linked to a foodborne outbreak of Salmonellosis in humans.

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