Yikes! Consumer Reports Finds Most Pork Contaminated with Yersinia Food Safety News

On Tuesday a new study from Consumer Reports on raw pork chops and ground pork found that 69 percent of the samples tested were contaminated with Yersinia enterocolitica, a lesser-known yet no less serious foodborne pathogen.

The tests also found Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, and Listeria monocytogenes in 3 to 7 percent of samples, while 11 percent carried Enterococcus, which can cause urinary-tract infections.

But 69 percent for Yersinia enterocolitica, which causes fever, diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain, is frighteningly high. Additionally, some of the bacteria were found to be resistant to antibiotics, likely the result of "the frequent use of low-dose antibiotics in pork farming" which is "accelerating the growth of drug-resistant 'superbugs' that threaten human health."

Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY), a vocal critic of agriculture's use of antibiotics, called the results "simply terrifying." In an official statement she said,

It's getting harder and harder for the food processing industry and the FDA to ignore the fact that the overuse of antibiotics in animals is threatening public health... Their half-measures and voluntary guidelines are no longer enough - we must act swiftly to reverse this public health crisis.

In response to this study, the USDA pointed to the low levels of Salmonella as evidence that pork processors are meeting federal food safety requirements. Okay... but what about the Yersinia results? According to Food Safety News,

The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service does not test for Yersinia in its periodic baseline studies, which give the agency data on the prevalence of pathogens in different meat products. Since Consumer Reports found "very low" Salmonella contamination levels, the agency says, this indicates that the pork industry is adequately controlling pathogens.

Additionally, the USDA focused its efforts on Salmonella because it's more resistant to heat than Yersinia, and that "lethality temperatures for Salmonella should effectively eliminate [Yersinia] in pork or other food products."

Read more:
What's In That Pork? ConsumerReports.org
Consumer Reports Finds Most Pork Contaminated with Yersinia Food Safety News

Related: Food Safety 101: Safe Temperatures for Poultry and Meat

(Image: Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan)

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Modern Glass Bakeware: More Likely to Shatter?

Have you ever suspected the decades-old Pyrex baking dish you received from your grandmother is a lot more durable than a modern glass dish? You might be right.

Earlier this year Consumer Reports published findings that the glass bakeware currently sold in the U.S. is more likely to shatter than its European counterparts. Since then, the magazine has received over 140 more reports of glassware unexpectedly shattering, with about half resulting in injury. What's going on here?

We missed this story when it came out in January, but the article and its accompanying video are fascinating. The two major brands of glass bakeware, Pyrex and Anchor Hocking, were originally made from borosilicate glass, a heat-resistant glass first developed by Corning for use in railroad yard lanterns in the early 1900s. At some point along the way no one will reveal exactly when, but it may have been in the 1980s or '90s both companies switched to soda lime glass, a less expensive alternative.

European glass bakeware is still made with borosilicate, so Consumer Reports put the two types of glass to the test in this video. They went beyond the conditions of the average kitchen, but the results are still clear: borosilicate glass is more resistant to extreme temperature changes than soda lime glass.

If you're feeling like you want to to review the safety instructions for glass bakeware right about now, Consumer Reports offers a good roundup of precautions.

Read the article: Glass bakeware that shatters at Consumer Reports
Check out the update: Shattered glass: More than 140 new incidents reported

Has this ever happened to you? Will you use glass bakeware less frequently now that you know about these issues?

Related: Good Question: Bad Break-up With My Pyrex Bowl?

(Image: Flickr member technodad licensed under Creative Commons)

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