Ground Turkey: Is It Safe to Eat?

Ironic, isn't it? Switching from ground beef to ground turkey was supposed to give you a more healthful sandwich.  But now Consumer Reports (a non-profit, independent product-testing organization) has expressed great concern about the results of its recent study, which suggests that ground turkey may not be a healthful alternative. The turkey industry responded with its defense.  Consumers are left wondering whether to cross ground turkey off their shopping list or not.  Go back to ground beef?  Well, in addition to worrying about the long-term dangers of eating too much red meat, consumers may recall that, in 2011, the Environmental Working Group research found bacteria on 55% of raw ground beef. So, is it best to eat the bun without a patty? That's a tough blow just at the start of the major grilling season.

A Bad Report on Ground Turkey

The widely-publicized Consumer Reports study of 257 ground turkey samples (ground meat and ground meat patties) taken from supermarkets in 21 states revealed the following bad news:

• The number of packages testing positive for fecal contamination: 60% harbored E. coli and 69% contained Enterococcus. 

• Overall, 90% of the samples contained one or more of the five bacteria the researchers were looking for.  These included Salmonella and Staphylococcus.

• Some bacteria the researchers found can cause food poisoning and urinary and bloodstream infections.

• Almost all of the pathogens found proved to be resistant to one or more of the antibiotics commonly prescribed to fight them.  (Note: antibiotics are given to some turkeys to treat illness and/or on a daily basis to protect against illness.)

• Organic ground turkey (or products raised without antibiotics) were just as likely to harbor bacteria as non-organic ones.  However, to quote the article, those bacteria were "much less likely to be antibiotic-resistant superbugs." 

• Although Consumer Reports states that the bacteria their researchers found would be killed by cooking, the article says that these bacteria "can produce toxins that may not be destroyed by heat."  [Food scientist Dr. Joe Regenstein says, "Just because they are found doesn't mean they will grow. Food scientist Dr. Catherine Cutter says, "Only Staphylococcus aureus can produce a heat-tolerant enterotoxin."

The Consumer Reports article is in the June 2013 issue of the publication and also online.

The Industry's Defense

The U.S. National Turkey Federation (the NFT), the trade association for the industry, disputes the significance of the Consumer Reports findings with the following points:

• The sampling was very small. [This suggests that the findings may not be accurate.] Also, the NFT says, blaming antibiotics is misleading.

• The main bacteria found by the researchers (Enterococcus and generic E. coli) are everywhere.   According to the Federation, MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) and E. coli "can even be found on about 20% of computer keyboards."

• The pathogens that cause the greatest risk to human health--Campylobacter and Salmonella-was almost totally absent from the samples.  Only 5% tested positive for salmonella and none were positive for Campylobacter. The Los Angeles Times quotes the NTF saying that most of the contamination found were of bacteria not harmful to humans.

• Some of the antibiotics the study tested (to see if the "bugs" were resistant to them) are ones not often used on humans or rarely administered to animals. 

• ŸUsing antibiotics to treat sick turkeys and to keep turkeys healthy lowers production costs and therefore lowers the price consumers pay. 

Responses from the Scientists on our Advisory Board

Food process engineer Dr. Timothy Bowser (Oklahoma State University) responded to the Consumer Reports study as follows:   "This news does not surprise me. Our food microbiologist, Dr. Peter Muriana, routinely samples and tests sliced deli meats from the grocery store in his microbiology class. They look at total plate counts and other tests. He claims that turkey meat consistently has 100 or more times the bacterial count compared to other meats he tests. This information does not necessarily correlate with other products from turkey, but it may deserve consideration."

Dr. Regenstein said this: "What animal doesn’t have some fecal contamination on its rear? The fact is that we clean that up but not perfectly."

Here are comments from food scientist Dr. Clair Hicks: "It is not surprising that poultry has fecal coliform or Salmonella.  Although the carcasses are rinsed and sanitized, it is virtually impossible to remove 100% of the bacteria. Positive samples are expected. The number of bacteria present gives an overview of the sanitary procedures used and affect the shelf life of the product.  So you would want to keep this number very low to get a great shelf life.  This is what is important. The proper cooking temperature will kill these bacteria, so safety is not a big issue with ground turkey."

What's a Consumer to Do?

Consumer Reports makes these recommendations to consumers:

About purchasing ground turkey or turkey patties:

ŸThe article suggests that buying ground turkey labeled "organic" or "no antibiotics" gives consumers turkey with bacteria that's less resistant to some medications. [Is that a great comfort to you, or are you still thinking of skipping ground turkey altogether?]  Furthermore, the article suggests, read the labeling carefully and look for the words "USDA Process Verified," which is assurance that the producer has done what is claimed on the package. (A list of no-antibiotic brands tested in the study is included in the article.)

• Note that the word "natural" means minimally processed (no artificial ingredients or added color) but that does NOT mean no antibiotics were ever fed to the animal.

About home handling of ground turkey:

• If you plan to keep the ground turkey for a few days before cooking, freeze it.

• Wash hands, surfaces, and utensils that raw turkey has touched. 

• Cook all ground meat until the temperature reaches at least 165°F in the center of the

     patty. Use a meat thermometer to be sure you do.

Source(s):

consumerrreports.org "Consumer Reports investigation: Talking turkey"

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2013/06/consumer-reports-investigation-talking-turkey/index.htm

huffingtonpost.com "Ground Turkey Study Finds More Than Half of Samples Contaminated with Fecal Bacteria"

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/30/ground-turkey-study-fecal-bacteria_n_3186285.html?utm_hp_ref=email_share

latimes.com "Contaminated ground turkey? Here are some safety tips for cooking"

http://www.latimes.com/features/food/dailydish/la-dd-contaminated-ground-turkey-here-are-some-safety-tips-for-cooking-20130501,0,1153093.story

globalmeatnews.com "US turkey sector disputes bacteria report findings"

http://www.globalmeatnews.com/Livestock/US-turkey-sector-disputes-bacteria-report-findings

Timothy J. Bowser, Ph.D., Oklahoma State University, Dept. of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering

Catherine N. Cutter, Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University, Dept. of Food Science

Joe Regenstein, Ph.D., Cornell University, Dept. of Food Science 

Clair L. Hicks, Ph.D., University of Kentucky, Dept. of Animal and Food Sciences