E-coli: Source of outbreak believed to have been found
An E.coli outbreak that has made more than 200 people sick has been traced to lettuce – so is it safe to eat?
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) told Sky News it is “too early to determine” how the lettuce leaves may have become contaminated – but it is “confident” that is the source.
Three companies have recalled dozens of sandwiches and wraps sold at supermarkets as a precautionary measure.
So how can lettuce end up carrying E.coli – and does this mean a summer without salad?
How could it happen?
There are three main ways lettuce leaves could have been contaminated with E.coli, according to Professor Jim Monaghan, professor of crop science at Harper Adams University in Shropshire.
E.coli “essentially wants to be inside the guts of warm-blooded animals”, he says, but pathogenic strains can be found in between 10-15% of dairy herds – which means a minority of manure is contaminated with it.
That manure – and the E.coli it carries – can end up on lettuce leaves in cases of direct contamination.
In cases of indirect contamination, the bacteria may get into the soil or water and be transferred to the lettuce that way.
How do farmers prevent contamination?
If farmers use manure to fertilise a field, they have to wait at least a year before they can plant lettuce there.
They must also test the water they are using for irrigation to see if E.coli is present.
“For a lettuce grower, if you’re irrigating a crop with water, if you’re not comfortable drinking that water, then you wouldn’t be irrigating the crop,” Prof Monaghan tells Sky News.
That doesn’t mean they need to irrigate with chlorine-treated tap water, he adds, but it must meet an “acceptable standard”.
Salad growers will also risk assess their sites and avoid planting salad in any areas prone to flooding to avoid potential water contamination.
The FSA has not revealed whether the lettuce came from a UK-based farm or was imported from abroad.
The latest figures show 211 cases of E-coli have been confirmed as of 11 June – and at least 67 people have required hospital treatment.
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How does E.coli spread?
Should you be worried about eating lettuce?
Prof Monaghan says he hasn’t changed his lettuce-buying habits in response to the recent outbreak.
“I have a bag of spinach and two whole head lettuces in my fridge at the moment. So knowing what I know about how UK growers manage their risks, to me that’s fine,” he says.
“But clearly something’s gone wrong.”
However, he notes a couple of things – beyond the usual rules growers must follow – that have reassured him about buying salad.
“One is it would appear that the product that’s caused a problem has left the supply chain,” he says.
The second is that everyone involved in salad production – from growers to salad and sandwich manufacturers – will be “sampling like crazy”.
Does washing salad leaves get rid of E.coli?
Once it reaches the factory, lettuce will be rinsed to remove surface contamination. Then chlorine is used to reduce the level of bacteria before it is rinsed again.
That is “effective to a certain extent”, Prof Monaghan says, but it does not eliminate bacteria entirely.
The same goes for washing lettuce at home – it will reduce the amount of bacteria, but not get rid of it.
Read more:
What are the symptoms of E.coli infection?
Full list of products recalled by sandwich suppliers
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How does the weather have an impact?
The recent wet weather could have created conditions where E.coli can more easily survive.
On a hot, sunny day, leaves will dry off quickly, reducing the chance of water contamination.
They will also be irradiated by UV rays, killing bacteria.
But on wet, overcast days, there is not the same opportunity for bacteria to be killed off, Prof Monaghan says.
We have had a damp start to the summer – and similar weather has been seen in Spain, Italy and France – all countries that import lettuce to the UK.
Why is it so difficult to trace the root cause?
Darren Whitby, head of incidents at the FSA, said identifying the source of the E.coli was a “complex and ongoing investigation”.
Part of the reason it’s so difficult to trace is because the contaminated products are a very small proportion of the sandwiches on supermarket shelves, Prof Monaghan says.
Then there’s the fact the products in question have a shelf life of days.
“Two days after a sandwich is made, you won’t find that sandwich again,” Prof Monaghan says.
“It’s either been eaten or it’s been taken off the shelf.”
The FSA has been investigating the issue along with the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), Food Standards Scotland and devolved public health agencies, businesses and local authorities.
Through epidemiological investigations and whole genome sequence analysis, they narrowed down the common foods consumed by people who had fallen ill to a small number of salad leaf products used in sandwiches, wraps, subs and rolls.
Dozens of products were recalled; while no E.coli had been found in them, it was a “precautionary measure” in case they were contaminated.
The fact E.coli was not found in the products indicates it has left the supply chain. “There’s no smoking gun,” Prof Monaghan says.
UK
Jury shown CCTV and bodycam footage of brothers allegedly assaulting police at Manchester Airport
CCTV and police bodycam footage allegedly showing three police officers being assaulted at Manchester Airport has been played to jurors.
Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and his brother, Muhammad Amaad, 26, are said to have struck out after police were called to the airport on 23 July last year, following Amaaz allegedly headbutting a customer at a Starbucks in Terminal 2.
Minutes later, three police officers approached the defendants at the paystation in the terminal’s car park.
A jury at Liverpool Crown Court today watched CCTV footage from opposite angles, which captured what the prosecution says was a “high level of violence” being used by the siblings.
The prosecution says Amaaz resisted as officers tried to move him to arrest him, and Amaad then intervened.
Junior counsel Adam Birkby suggested Amaaz threw 10 punches, including one to the face of PC Lydia Ward, which knocked her to the floor.
His brother Amaad is then said to have aimed six punches at firearms officer PC Zachary Marsden.
Amaaz also allegedly kicked PC Marsden and struck firearms officer PC Ellie Cook twice with his elbow.
He is said to have punched PC Marsden from behind and had a hold of him, before PC Cook discharged her Taser.
Mohammed Fahir Amaaz (left) and Muhammed Amaad (right) arrive at the court with their lawyer. Pic: PA
The bodycam and CCTV footage, submitted as evidence by the prosecution, allegedly shows the officers’ arrival in the Terminal 2 car park and their attempts to arrest the siblings, as well as their exchanges with them.
PC Ward can be heard saying “Oi, you b*****d” in footage from her bodycam, the prosecution evidence appears to show.
She then appears to fall to the floor and screams.
PC Cook, who is pointing her Taser at one of the defendants, then allegedly says: “Stay on the floor, stay on the floor whatever you do.”
“Get back, get back,” PC Ward appears to say.
The bodycam footage, shown to the jury by the prosecution, shows PC Marsden, who is also pointing his Taser, appear to approach the defendant who is lying on the ground and kick out at him.
Mr Birkby said: “Mr Amaaz, while prone, lifts his head towards the officers. PC Marsden kicks Mr Amaaz around the head area.
“PC Marsden stamps his foot towards the crown of Mr Amaaz’s head area but doesn’t appear to connect with Mr Amaaz.”
Amaaz denies three counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm to the three police officers and one count of assault to Abdulkareem Ismaeil, the customer at Starbucks.
Amaad denies one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm to PC Marsden.
UK
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UK
UK farmers have ‘nothing more to give’ as they fear govt will compromise welfare in US-UK trade deal
UK farmers have “nothing more to give” as they fear the government will use agriculture to further reduce US tariffs in a trade deal with the White House.
The UK is trying to reduce steel tariffs to zero, from a current reduced rate of 25%, but Downing Street refused to confirm if it was confident ahead of Donald Trump’s deadline of 9 July.
Tom Bradshaw, president of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), said UK agriculture had already been used to reduce Trump-imposed tariffs on cars but any other concessions would have serious repercussions for farmers, food security and the UK’s high animal welfare standards.
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He told Sky News: “It just feels like we, as the agricultural sector, had to shoulder the responsibility to reduce the tariffs on cars from 25%.
“We can’t do it anymore, we have nothing more to give.
“It’s clear the steel quotas and tariffs aren’t sorted yet, so we just want to be very clear with the government: if they’re sitting around the negotiating table – which we understand they are – they can’t expect agriculture to give any more.”
Tom Bradshaw, the head of the NFU, said farmers cannot give any more
‘Massively undermine our standards’
Since 30 June, the US has been able to import 13,000 tonnes of hormone-free British beef without tariffs under a deal made earlier this year, which farmers feel was to reduce the car import levy Mr Trump imposed.
The UK was also given tariff-free access to 1.4bn litres of US ethanol, which farmers say will put the UK’s bioethanol and associated sectors under pressure.
Allowing lower US food standards would “massively undermine our standards” and would mean fewer sales to the European Union where food standards are also high, Mr Bradshaw said.
It would leave British farmers competing on a playing field that is “anything but fair”, he said, because US food can be produced – and sold – much cheaper due to low welfare which could see a big reduction in investment in UK farms, food security and the environment.
Read more:
Trump tariff deadline extended as new threats issued to BRICs nations
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Can the UK avoid steel tariffs?
‘The US will push hard for more access’
He said the US narrative has always suggested they want access to British agriculture products “as a start and they’ll negotiate for more”.
“The narrative from the White House on 8 May, when a US-UK trade deal was announced, was all about further access to our agriculture products – it was very different to what our government was saying,” he added.
“So far, the UK has stood firm and upheld our higher welfare standards, but the US will push very hard to have further access.
“No country in the world has proved they can reduce the 10% tariffs further.”
US poultry welfare is lower than the UK, with much more intensive farming that means the meat has to be washed with antimicrobials. Pic: AP
US ‘will target poultry and pork’
The Essex farmer said he expects the US to push “very hard” to get the UK to lower its standards on poultry and pork, specifically.
US poultry is often washed with antimicrobials, including chlorine, in an attempt to wash off high levels of bacteria caused by poor hygiene, antibiotic use and low animal welfare conditions not allowed in UK farming.
US pig rearing methods are also quite different, with intensive farming and the use of feed additive ractopamine legal, with both banned in the UK.
A government spokesperson told Sky News: “We regularly speak to businesses across the UK to understand the impact of tariffs and will only ever act in the national interest.
“Our Plan for Change has delivered a deal which will open up exclusive access for UK beef farmers to the US market for the first time ever and all agricultural imports coming to the UK will have to meet our high SPS (sanitary and phytosanitary) standards.”
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