Chef Convicted: 1 Dead, 31 sickened by shepherd's pie!

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Bitser

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"A church harvest supper at a village pub ended in tragedy when one of the congregation was killed and 31 others suffered food poisoning after eating a shepherd’s pie filled with mince that had been incorrectly prepared by a rushing chef.

Elizabeth Neuman, 92, repeatedly vomited after eating the pie and died while other parishioners became “unpleasantly ill” and three of those attending only escaped because they were vegetarians, Reading crown court heard.

The cook, John Croucher, who at the time was head chef at the Crewe Arms in the Northamptonshire village of Hinton-in-the-Hedges, was given a four-month jail sentence, suspended for 12 months, after admitting a charge of contravening food regulations.

Defending himself in court, Croucher, 40, said: 'I hate to say it, I really hate to say it, but I think I was rushed. I was rushing.' He said he had worked in kitchens for 20 years and was now 'a better chef' because of the 'horrible, horrible circumstance.'

The judge, Sarah Campbell, said: 'On 8 October 2018, 35 villagers went to the Crewe Arms for a harvest meal. Thirty-two people ate the shepherd’s pie. A healthy and well person died of a gastrointestinal haemorrhage induced from vomiting. No sentence I pass can reflect the loss caused to the family.'"

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news...e-pub-northamptonshire?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
 
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It pays to be extremely careful when you cook, whether it's for family or a large group. When we shared a science field station with another project, they got knee-crawling sick, with vomiting and diarrhea, because they tried to thaw frozen chicken parts in the pan, browning them without fully cooking them.

I've been the cook on expeditions, with camps a long way (in both distance and elevation) from medical help. So I take food and cooking safety as a serious obligation.

Around the holidays, with the drinking and gabbing, food gets improperly cooked or left out overnight. It's not a bad idea to be the last one up, on the lookout for leftovers left on the counter instead of placed in the fridge.
 
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For a trained chef to end up poisoning people with the food he prepared is totally unacceptable. That´s like a doctor prescribing the wrong medicine or a tax advisor getting you convicted for fraud!
The chef, of all people, should have known and followed the regulations - which he didn´t.
I only hope this article doesn´t arouse the fearmongers in the UK. Cases like this are extremely rare, thank goodness.
 
It pays to be extremely careful when you cook, whether it's for family or a large group. When we shared a science field station with another project, they got knee-crawling sick, with vomiting and diarrhea, because they tried to thaw frozen chicken parts in the pan, browning them without fully cooking them.

I've been the cook on expeditions, with camps a long way (in both distance and elevation) from medical help. So I take food and cooking safety as a serious obligation.

Around the holidays, with the drinking and gabbing, food gets improperly cooked or left out overnight. It's not a bad idea to be the last one up, on the lookout for leftovers left on the counter instead of placed in the fridge.

I'll agree with all of this.

It's especially sad that a woman lives to be 92 years old, then dies because of someone else's negligence.
 
I think a few here are aware I'm not into doom and gloom. Fear mongering should not be here and now when I think of this thread that is basically what it is. That purportedly happened in 2018. Three years ago.

We all know tragedies can and do happen. I see no reason to constantly bring something like that up.

I am going to ask the moderators to lock this thread as I really don't see the necessity of everyone now posting how Great Aunt Tilly ruined someone wedding with the deviled eggs.

Just please everyone with the holiday season upon us practice good kitchen habits.
 
I think a few here are aware I'm not into doom and gloom. Fear mongering should not be here and now when I think of this thread that is basically what it is. That purportedly happened in 2018. Three years ago.

We all know tragedies can and do happen. I see no reason to constantly bring something like that up.

I am going to ask the moderators to lock this thread as I really don't see the necessity of everyone now posting how Great Aunt Tilly ruined someone wedding with the deviled eggs.

Just please everyone with the holiday season upon us practice good kitchen habits.

*thumbs up*
 
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