Eggs from a Victorian farm have been recalled and the farm quarantined after five cases of illness to the salmonella enteritidis strain were identified by the Department of Health.

Quarantine is in place at Bridgewater Poultry, a farm at Bridgewater, north-west of Melbourne, and strict biosecurity measures have been put in place to protect neighbouring farms.

Dr Brett Sutton, Chief Health Officer of Victoria told Tom Elliott the recall is widespread, as both major supermarkets distribute eggs from this farm.

“It’s a really quite extensive list because it’s a pretty significant producer and distributor,” he said.

“They’re found in both Woolies and Coles and there might be some other smaller outlets identified in coming days.

“It’s not known to be in Australia normally so we absolutely want it to be snuffed out where it’s found.

“The problem with this sort of salmonella is rather than just contaminating the surface of the egg, if it gets deep inside, it makes it more likely to cause food poisoning for a slightly under-cooked runny egg, and certainly for a raw egg, in something like mayonnaise.

“So we want to get rid of it, it’s an exotic pest as it were, and this particular bacterium needs to be eliminated from this farm.”

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Eggs included in the recall are:
Woolworths 12 Cage Free Eggs 700g
Victorian Fresh Barn Laid Eggs 600g
Victorian Fresh Barn Laid Eggs 700g
Victorian Fresh Barn Laid Eggs 800g
Loddon Valley Barn Laid 600g

More here.

Image: Food Standards Australia New Zealand