Raw egg butter used at three Adelaide bakeries is to blame for a salmonella outbreak that hospitalised 19 people, SA Health has revealed.
Angkor Bakery outlets at Burton, Blakeview and Salisbury Downs — all in Adelaide's northern suburbs — closed last week after salmonella cases were linked to Vietnamese rolls, also known as banh mi.
SA Health said a total of 51 people had fallen ill since the outbreak started.
SA Health acting director of public health services Dr Fay Jenkins said all three bakeries were expected to reopen tomorrow.
They have been advised to stop using raw egg butter, which is similar to mayonnaise.
"The owners of the Angkor Bakery stores continue to work closely with the local councils and SA Health to improve their practices, and all three bakeries closed voluntarily during the investigation," Dr Jenkins said.
Last week, SA Health said raw egg butter, pate or barbecue pork ingredients could be linked to the outbreak.
Of those, the only product that contained raw egg was the butter.
Dr Jenkins said raw egg products could be risky if not appropriately handled.
"Many food poisoning outbreaks have been associated with foods containing raw or partially-cooked eggs, such as aioli, mayonnaise, hollandaise or tartare sauce and mousse," Dr Jenkins said.
"The external shell of eggs may contain harmful bacteria such as salmonella, and while eggs may not necessarily look or smell 'off', they may be contaminated.
"It's important to check that eggs are clean and not cracked or dirty — and those that are should be thrown out.
"Preparation surfaces and utensils should be thoroughly washed, sanitised and dried after handling eggs, and remember to think of raw eggs like raw meat, and wash your hands thoroughly after handling them."
Similar issues before at bakery
Last week, SA Health said a similar issue was reported at the same bakery in 2015.
"A number of years ago we had a similar problem from this particular bakery and that was investigated and the business was supported in terms of looking at their food hygiene practices," SA Health deputy chief medical officer Dr Nicola Spurrier said.
Lakhina Eung, the shop owner of the bakery in Burton, said she was sorry to anyone impacted by the outbreak and hoped the community would still support the business.
"I couldn't sleep for over three days now so it's been stressful," she said.
"I am really sorry to everyone that is affected and also I hope that the community will still be supportive to us and our customers [will] still support us.
"I hope that the public and the community still trusts us and we [will] try our best to do everything as the council and SA Health require."
