Regarding the poisoning case of pickled fish, Associate Professor, Doctor, Doctor Do Van Dung, Head of the Faculty of Public Health , University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ho Chi Minh City, said that pickling is a long-standing method of preserving food. However, when salting or fermenting does not reach the right acidity, it will cause bacterial contamination and poisoning. "Sour pickled fish is a specialty not only in the Central region but also in many other regions. Therefore, to avoid poisoning, it is necessary to instruct people on how to pickle properly and not to eat it too early, when the fermentation time has not reached the right level" - Mr. Dung said.
Doctors at Cho Ray Hospital examine a patient who was poisoned after eating pickled salted fish in Quang Nam . (Photo: Provided by the hospital)
According to Associate Professor, Doctor, Doctor Do Van Dung, fish always have C. botulinum bacteria in their intestines, so when salting fish, the bacteria will still be present. Therefore, Westerners always remove the intestines when processing fish. Many people think that the product should be put in a carefully sterilized box or bag, but this is not valid because C. botulinum bacteria are already present in the fish.
"Bacteria can be removed by steaming or boiling fish, but if you do so, it will no longer be a raw, pickled fish dish," said Dr. Dung.
Doctor Dung said the poisoning incident in Quang Nam may have been caused by people not salting the fish enough and eating it too soon, not giving it enough time to ferment and create a low enough pH to inhibit C. botulinum bacteria.
Associate Professor, Doctor, Doctor Do Van Dung said that most of the C. botulinum toxin is destroyed at high temperatures. Therefore, cooking food immediately before eating will ensure relative safety. The risk of poisoning occurs if food is kept for a long time without being cooked again before eating. This is often found in canned food, food stored in sealed jars, in plastic bags, food soaked in oil, pickled/fermented food (such as pickled carp, salted herring, salted crab, crab sauce, etc.).
To avoid poisoning, when making salted/sour seafood, there must be enough salt (salt content 20%) or a combination of sour/salty (salt content 5% and pH <5). Saltiness and sourness will inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria. Therefore, pickling is still considered a safe method of food preservation.
For canned foods in particular, manufacturers need to sterilize canned foods. Foods kept in sealed jars or plastic bags for long periods of time are susceptible to C. botulinum contamination and toxin production if the food is contaminated with bacteria from raw materials, during processing or storage, from soil or water. Therefore, people should only use these foods when they have complete confidence in the production, storage and transportation process; ensure that canned foods are used within their expiration date and do not eat them if they have a strange taste.
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