Media release: 18 September 2016
The theme for the 20th Australian Food Safety Week, to be held from 6 to 12 November 2016, was announced today as ‘Raw and risky’ foods.
Council Chair, Rachelle Williams, said we have seen major food poisoning outbreaks in recent years linked to risky raw foods such as unpasteurized milk, raw eggs, bean/seed sprouts, frozen berries and lettuce.
‘Each year an estimated 4.1 million people get food poisoning in Australia, 1 million Australians have to visit a doctor with food poisoning, 32,000 people end up in hospital and 86 people die,’ Ms Williams said.
‘Australian Food Safety Week is the major activity of the Food Safety Information Council and plays a vital role in reducing the cases of food poisoning in Australia. This year we will be celebrating the 20th Australian Food Safety Week by issuing the latest research and advice on how to avoid food poisoning from risky raw foods. A downloadable package of material for use in Australian Food Safety Week events, including a draft media release, an online quiz and hand washing and temperature advice graphics will be available from the end of September.
‘The 2015 Food Safety Week, with a budget of less than $20,000, was one of the most successful ever:
- 90 organisations, including local government, schools, aged care facilities and workplaces registered events with us
- our media release generated 56 news items that reached 12,098,793 unique viewers
- more than 6,000 people completed our online food safety quiz
- our radio messages were played 6,903 times on 78 stations (20 metropolitan and 58 rural, regional and remote)
- our TV community service announcement was broadcast 329 times nationally
- an Omnipoll national survey we held in late January 2016 found that total recall of a food safety message in the media was 31% – 23% recalled messages on TV, 9% in newspapers, 6% on radio and 9% on the internet.
‘But we are concerned that this year’s activities will be severely curtailed as we still haven’t had our long term Federal Government restored after it was suddenly withdrawn 2 years ago. Help us make sure that the 20th Australian Food Safety Week won’t be the last by sponsoring our important work, particularly to fund our research, radio and TV announcements and media release distribution. You can contact us on 0407 626 688 or emailing info@foodsafety.asn.au,’ Ms Williams concluded.
Media Contact: Lydia Buchtmann, Food Safety Information Council, 0407 626 688 info@foodsafety.asn.au
The Food Safety Information Council is Australia’s leading disseminator of consumer-targeted food safety information and a health promotion charity. Australian Food Safety Week is the major activity of the Food Safety Information Council. For further Information and how to donate see: www.foodsafety.asn.au