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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-02-22 Daily Xml
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SALMONELLA OUTBREAK

Dr McFETRIDGE (Morphett) (16:36): I draw the attention of the house to the recent salmonella outbreak in South Australia—a serious public health incident. I have spoken to the proprietors of both premises involved, Vili's Bakery and St George Cakes and Gelati, and Vili and Angelo are absolutely devastated about not only what has happened to their businesses but also the whole public health episode.

The first notification of this outbreak was by a press release on 4 February. The incident itself actually peaked on 21 January. I note that there was another press conference last Friday, 17 February, when it was said that there were 23 more Salmonella typhimurium phage type 9 cases in the past week. That is not quite correct. This incident was in late January, and the reports for the last group of cases actually came through in the week before, so this is not an ongoing epidemic; there is no pandemic here. There is a serious public health issue that has been well managed by Angelo and Vili in their premises.

The people of South Australia can be assured that both of these businesses are doing everything they can to cooperate with the officers of the public health department to make sure that not only are South Australians protected, as Vili and Angelo would want, but also that the businesses are allowed to continue in the way they would like, that is, producing top-quality products for South Australians to eat.

We should remember that the businesses become victims of these sorts of outbreaks just as much as those people who are affected by the contaminants. Vili's exports to many countries around the world, and it has very high ISO and HACCP standards. There are 300 people employed at Vili's, and there are Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service inspections on regular occasions and the highest levels are maintained. In similar fashion, the highest levels are maintained at Angelo's, St George Cakes and Gelati.

One of the problems you have, though, when you are dealing with perishable products such as cakes and the like, is that you are wholesaling and then passing them out to retailers to sell. It is interesting that the first press release of 4 February says that 'customers should return the product to the place of purchase', and that is what I want to address today. The problem you have with this type of issue is that you are not only dealing with the wholesalers. I have spoken with both Angelo at St George's and Vili at Vili's Bakery. Every test and every swab that the government has done has come back negative for salmonella—every one—so they cannot show the point of contamination.

The epidemiological studies show that there is a strong correlation. The problem you have, though, is that not everybody went to Cafe de Vili's, or was supplied direct from Vili's, or went to St George Cakes and Gelati and bought their cakes there; they bought them at other places. In 2009, Vili Milisits wrote to the minister and pointed out the fact that there was a chance of a serious public health issue because they were supplying pristine product to retailers who were then not able to refrigerate or handle the food properly, so increasing the risk of contamination and the risk of a food poisoning outbreak.

The other big issue that Vili raised with the minister back on 23 July 2009 was the issue of passing off other products as Vili's products. In fact, I have a photograph here of a tray of cakes. They are in a Vili's pie container and tray which has a Balfour's lid on it, and I know that the cakes inside there were not made by either Balfours or Vili's. In fact, these cakes were supplied to a northern suburbs supermarket where they were on display, unrefrigerated.

There are so many areas in the supply chain where contamination can occur, or where less than ideal conditions can occur, so that the chances of a food poisoning outbreak can come to fruition. In the case of both Vili's Bakery and St George bakery, I do not know whether any of these people are donors to any political party, I do not believe that is the case at all, but I do know these guys are doing their very best to make sure that South Australians are getting the best quality food and I wish them well.

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