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Nearly Half of Tested Chicken Contaminated

Aired December 11, 2002 - 14:33   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: "Consumer Reports" magazine has found harmful bacteria in nearly half the chickens it brought at stories -- or bought at stores, rather, around the country, and much of that bacteria is drug-resistant.
Our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, now here with the details on what this all means -- Elizabeth.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, the problem with antibiotic resistance in animals is that, let's say you buy a chicken that is antibiotic resistant. Well, if you then eat that chicken, you're eating a bacteria that is resistant to at least one antibiotic. That means that if you get sick, and your doctor gives you that antibiotic, well that's a problem. It's not going to help you.

Again, what "Consumer Reports" found is that half of all chickens were infected with either campylobacter or salmonella, and 90 percent of those infected with campylobacter were resistant to at least one antibiotic. Thirty-four percent of those chickens infected with salmonella were resistant, also, to at least one antibiotic.

And what "Consumer Reports" says is that clearly something needs to be done, and part of the problem is that chickens are just getting too many antibiotics. But the industry says, No, we only give antibiotics to chickens when they really need them, when they're really sick, and need to be treated -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Elizabeth. So what are we, the consumers, supposed to do?

COHEN: Well, there are some things that you can do in your kitchen to help yourself out. First of all, you need to separate chicken from other food items. For example, when you go shopping, get one of those plastic bags that they have in the produce section, put your chicken in it so that the juices don't leak out all over the other food.

Second of all, store chicken at or below 40 degrees in your refrigerator or in your freezer. Put it in the freezer if you're not going to eat it for more than a few days. Some other tips for things that you can do, is wash the food prep area with hot soap and water and wash your hands with hop soap and water, so you can make sure that you don't transfer any bacteria from your hands to other foods.

And also, cook the chicken to 170 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit, obviously we don't want rare or medium rare chicken, and use the thermometer. Do not use your eyes -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Now, what should the government be doing?

COHEN: What the consumer advocates say the government ought to be doing is better inspections. They say they need to be more careful. They need to actually look at campylobacter. Right now, what they do is they actually look at salmonella, and they say that the government also ought to regulate the use of antibiotics. Consumer advocates say way too many antibiotics are used, and that the government needs to tell the industry to stop using so many -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Elizabeth Cohen, thanks for the insight.

COHEN: Thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired December 11, 2002 - 14:33   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: "Consumer Reports" magazine has found harmful bacteria in nearly half the chickens it brought at stories -- or bought at stores, rather, around the country, and much of that bacteria is drug-resistant.
Our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, now here with the details on what this all means -- Elizabeth.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, the problem with antibiotic resistance in animals is that, let's say you buy a chicken that is antibiotic resistant. Well, if you then eat that chicken, you're eating a bacteria that is resistant to at least one antibiotic. That means that if you get sick, and your doctor gives you that antibiotic, well that's a problem. It's not going to help you.

Again, what "Consumer Reports" found is that half of all chickens were infected with either campylobacter or salmonella, and 90 percent of those infected with campylobacter were resistant to at least one antibiotic. Thirty-four percent of those chickens infected with salmonella were resistant, also, to at least one antibiotic.

And what "Consumer Reports" says is that clearly something needs to be done, and part of the problem is that chickens are just getting too many antibiotics. But the industry says, No, we only give antibiotics to chickens when they really need them, when they're really sick, and need to be treated -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Elizabeth. So what are we, the consumers, supposed to do?

COHEN: Well, there are some things that you can do in your kitchen to help yourself out. First of all, you need to separate chicken from other food items. For example, when you go shopping, get one of those plastic bags that they have in the produce section, put your chicken in it so that the juices don't leak out all over the other food.

Second of all, store chicken at or below 40 degrees in your refrigerator or in your freezer. Put it in the freezer if you're not going to eat it for more than a few days. Some other tips for things that you can do, is wash the food prep area with hot soap and water and wash your hands with hop soap and water, so you can make sure that you don't transfer any bacteria from your hands to other foods.

And also, cook the chicken to 170 to 180 degrees Fahrenheit, obviously we don't want rare or medium rare chicken, and use the thermometer. Do not use your eyes -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Now, what should the government be doing?

COHEN: What the consumer advocates say the government ought to be doing is better inspections. They say they need to be more careful. They need to actually look at campylobacter. Right now, what they do is they actually look at salmonella, and they say that the government also ought to regulate the use of antibiotics. Consumer advocates say way too many antibiotics are used, and that the government needs to tell the industry to stop using so many -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Elizabeth Cohen, thanks for the insight.

COHEN: Thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com