The FSA is issuing precautionary advice to consumers who have purchased specific batches of British Lion eggs which may be contaminated with salmonella.
Egg producer LJ Fairburn said it had identified a potential salmonella issue on one of its farms, following routine testing. “Food safety, the safety of consumers and the welfare of our hens are paramount and as soon as we became aware of the potential issue, we alerted the British Egg Industry Council and the Animal & Plant Health Agency,” said a spokesperson. “We have also been working closely with the retailers who sell our eggs and the Food Standards Agency which has issued precautionary advice on this matter.”
“We operate rigorous and enhanced salmonella testing regimes, above the requirements of legislation, which alerted us to this problem. This issue only affects eggs from fully vaccinated birds, housed on one site, with the farm codes 0UK15270, 1UK15270 or 3UK15270 and selected best before dates.”
The codes are stamped on the eggshell. The eggs affected are sold in Aldi, Sainsbury’s, Asda, and Costco in England and Wales only.
The FSA advises any customer who has bought these eggs to thoroughly cook them before they are eaten, and follow good hygiene and egg handling practices.
The British Egg Industry Council said it supported this precautionary advice. “The UK egg industry has the most stringent food safety standards in the world,” said a spokesman. “In addition to the standards required by the UK’s National Control Programme, the British Egg Industry Council’s Lion Quality scheme requires increased, rigorous sampling and testing of egg farms and packing stations and, if salmonella is found, those eggs cannot be sold for human consumption.”