Published on Monday, 16 November 2020 at 2:00:00 PM

WA has one of the highest rates of food poisoning, the majority of which occur in the home and not at commercial or retail food outlets.  Food poisoning can be very serious particularly for vulnerable people in the community such as the elderly and children. 

The most common causes of food borne illness in WA is from two types of bacteria, Salmonella and Campylobacter.  In recent years WA has seen a rise in Salmonella cases.  It is estimated that more than 75% of Salmonella cases are the result of poor food hygiene at home.  Correctly preparing, cooking and storing food in the home is the simplest way to avoid food poisoning.

The Play it Food Safe Campaign calls on people to ‘play it food safe’ and clean, separate, cook and chill when they prepare, handle and store food, to stop the spread of food poisoning bacteria.  It aims to reduce the number of foodborne illness cases by changing behaviour and culture around food preparation and storage.

The Play it Food Safe Campaign is a timely reminder for the community about preventing food borne illness ahead of the warmer months.   For food safety tips, visit www.healthywa.wa.gov.au/foodsafety

Healthy WA

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