Deadly E coli outbreak unlikely to strike Australia

Australia's peak vegetable group Ausveg said on Monday the E. coli outbreak is unlikely to strike Australia.

A farm in northern Germany was shut down after tests revealed beansprouts grown in the country were the likely cause of the deadly outbreak, which has reportedly infected over 1,700 people across 12 European nations, and at least 19 have died.

According to William Churchill from Ausveg, Australia does not import beansprouts and other vegetables from Europe.

"In Australia we've got some of the highest quality reassurance programs, the most stringent programs you'll see around the entire planet," he said in a statement.

"E. coli breakouts in this country are extremely rare and the sort of illness as we've seen in Europe, cases of deaths as well, just won't happen in this country."

The Australian Medical Association (AMA) president Dr Steve Hamilton said authorities in Europe indicated that the numbers of E. coli infection are starting to decrease.

Australian federal Health Department also said it has asked General Practices across the nation to be on the alert for cases of infections related to the outbreak in Europe.

Source: Xinhua

	Weekly review