Half of chickens 'infected'

Link: The Sun Online - News

Half of chickens 'infected' FULL NEWS INDEX By PETE BELL Sun Online MORE than half of shop-sold chickens are contaminated with the superbug E.coli, a survey revealed today. Food campaigners called for Government monitoring after a BBC investigation revealed the scale of the problem. The survey was carried out for the broadcasters by the Health Protection Agency. Soil Association policy adviser Richard Young said: "Everyone knows about superbugs like MRSA but the growing problem of drug-resistant E.coli poses a potentially bigger problem because the infection is so much more common." Mr Young said the Government had already carried out studies of antibiotic resistance in pigs, cattle and sheep. He called for similar surveys of chicken, saying: "It is appalling that no similar detailed surveillance has been undertaken for chicken, despite the fact that chicken is the biggest source of foodborne infections in the UK".