Antibiotic resistant MRSA bacteria has been found in Finnøy
Antibiotic resistant MRSA bacteria has been found to be present in a pig farm in Finnøy in Rogaland, according to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Mattilsynet).
– The affected meat was found in butchered pigs and piglets, but the producer hasn’t sold any of the affected animals to people, said Mattilsynet on Friday.
Some of the animals have already been killed, and the rest were to be sent to slaughter on Saturday.
– It’s not dangerous to eat the meat, so luckily we don’t have to throw away good food, says Odd Ivar Berget, Head of Department in Mattilsynet.
MRSA can be found in the flesh from pigs infected with the bacterium, but the likelihood that humans would be infected by eating the pork is very small. The bacteria are found mainly on the surface of the meat and are killed by heat treatment.
– Norway is still in a unique situation, where resistant MRSA bacteria have not been rooted in Norwegian livestock farming. This is a situation we want to keep, and government and industry are working together to achieve this, Berget explains.
© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today
