Day 066 - 14 Dec 94 - Page 15

     
     1        humans.
     2
     3   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Could I just ask when Dr. Gonzales mentioned
     4        "salmonella" a few moments you said something else as
     5        well, "salmonella and"?
     6        A.  Listeria.
     7
     8   Q.   I got that earlier but it was listeria again when you got
     9        to farms, was it?
    10        A.  It was salmonella when I got to farms.
    11
    12   Q.  "Salmonella and", I thought you said something else, but
    13        I did not quite catch it?
    14        A.  I do not recall.
    15
    16   MR. MORRIS:  I think he said at the processing stage salmonella
    17        was a problem as well?
    18        A.  In the farm as well as the processing.
    19
    20   MR. RAMPTON:  There might be a salmonella problem on the farm?
         A.  Yes.
    22
    23   Q.   At what stage do the other two bacteria that you mentioned,
    24        salmonella and E.coli 0157:H7 -----
    25        A.  They could come into the food chain at any step of the
    26        process.  Bacteria, you can find them in this courtroom,
    27        you can find them in anywhere, anywhere basically; you can
    28        find them on earth or water or food or on animals.  There
    29        is not a single organism that is free from bacteria, so you
    30        will find it anywhere.
    31
    32   Q.   What about my dinner plate at home when I put it through
    33        the dishwasher and I bring it out, will it have any
    34        colonies of bacteria on it?
    35        A.  If your dishwasher cooks the dishes or the food, then
    36        you will not find bacteria.  So, basically, cooking
    37        destroys the bacteria.
    38
    39   Q.   By the application of heat?
    40        A.  By the application of heat, that is correct.
    41
    42   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  The screen, in fact -- if could I just track
    43        down that elusive word -- reads "make a general assumption
    44        that salmonella bacteria", and then we have "selnosis" down
    45        there.  Does that ring any bells at all?
    46
    47   MR. RAMPTON:  "Salmonellosis" is that a word?
    48        A.  Oh, yes, sorry.  Salmonellosis.  Salmonella is the
    49        bacteria.  The food-borne illness is called salmonellosis.
    50 
    51   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Thank you very much. 
    52 
    53   MR. RAMPTON:  We have moved, I think, to E.coli and listeria and
    54        I cannot remember what the answer was.  I asked you at what
    55        stage in the process they might be thought to constitute a
    56        risk, where they come in?
    57        A.  They could come in from the farm, from the abattoirs or
    58        from the processing plants.
    59
    60   Q.   Do the same sorts of considerations apply to pigs and