A Consumer Reports investigation found that turkey contains harmful bacteria, some of which are anti-biotic resistant. Salmonella and staphylococcus aureus were among some of the bacteria found in samples, two of the leading causes of foodborne illness in the United States.
Data from the investigations said that almost all of the bacteria found in the turkey samples were antibiotic resistant. The disease-causing germs from the 257 samples were resistant to some of the most widely used antibiotics.
The samples were tested for five types of bacteria, enterococcus, Escherichia coli (E. coli), staphyloccusaureus, salmonella and campylobacter. Out of all the samples taken, 90 percent contained one or more types of these germs.
Cargill Value Added Meats Retail announced one of the largest poultry recalls in 2011, voluntarily removing 36 million pounds of ground turkey from stores. The antibiotic resistant superbug, Heidelberg, a form of salmonella, contaminated turkey that was traced back to Cargill. During the outbreak, 136 people became ill and one person died, according to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
"As we've publicly stated over the past year and a half, no stone was left unturned in our efforts to determine the originating source of salmonella Heidelberg associated with the ground-turkey recalls, yet to this day we do not know the origin of the bacteria linked to outbreak of illnesses," Mike Robach, vice president of corporate food safety and regulatory affairs for Cargill in Minneapolis, said.
Antibiotics similar to the ones found in human medicine are given to turkeys and other food animals to treat minor illness, including chicken and pigs. Animals that are healthy are also given drugs through food and water to prevent disease and make them gain weight faster.
According to Consumer Reports, the bacteria enterococcus was found in 69 percent of ground turkey meat samples, E.coli was found in 60 percent. Both bacteria were found to be resistant to three or more antibiotics.
Large feedlots and facilities that mass produce turkey practice giving drugs to the animals, making drug-resistant superbugs a concern for public health. Several antibiotics may have to be given to a person that develops an illness from the bacteria found in turkey before one finally works to fight the germ.
The National Turkey Federation said that the findings in Consumer Reports are misleading, as the claims are based on such a small sampling of ground turkey products. NTF President Joel Brandenberger slammed Consumer Reports stating that it sensationalized it's findings in the ground turkey meat to mislead the public.
