FSA Clamps Down on Rare Meat

The organisation states that all poultry, as well as liver and offal, should be cooked until no pink remains. While this is only guidance rather than law, these guidelines are being increasingly enforced by environmental health officers during inspections, which can affect hygiene ratings.

There is also a clampdown on serving burgers rare and having separate machinery to deal with raw and cooked foods.

The highest profile case was when Marcus Wareing’s restaurant The Berkeley was downgraded from the top hygiene rating to the bottom because he only had one vacuum-packing machine.

Food writer Prue Leith wrote in an article for The Spectator, “[Marcus Wareing] had been downgraded, without warning, from the top hygiene rating to the bottom because he only had one machine. Never mind that his kitchen, and everything in it, is spotless (he’d never have had a five-star rating if it weren’t), that he had not poisoned anyone, that cross–contamination will never occur if the machine is cleaned properly, that even the manufacturers say two machines are unnecessary, and that the two-machine rule is guidance, not law. Never mind all that. Marcus could not hang around to argue. He bought the unnecessary machine and his five-star rating was restored.

“If you have a really good chef, or course he is going to be good about making sure he is not poisoning anybody. Of course, he will be highly aware of hygiene and how bugs grow. Almost always when there is a food poisoning scandal, the reason is simple hygiene rules. People have left food sitting in a warm kitchen for four hours or have used the same knife – simple stuff.”

An FSA spokesperson added, “Steak is safe to eat rare. Whole cuts of beef or lamb, such as steaks, cutlets and joints only have germs on the outside, so as long as the outside is fully cooked any germs will be killed. But this isn’t true for poultry, pork, burgers and sausages, these must be cooked all the way through.

“Unlike steaks, burgers and sausages are made from meat that has been minced, so germs will be spread throughout the product and not just on the surface. This means these products need to be properly cooked all the way through. 

“The responsibility rests with food businesses to produce safe food, and if they want to serve rare burgers, they need to demonstrate that this can be done under proper control, and in a safe way.”