Advice on eating safe this Christmas (From South Wales Argus)

Did i miss something when i lived away in the 90s? I mean, did the area get an objective one grant for a group labotomy or something; with the health and safety police taking the contract to look after what used to be termed as common sense?

We lived in caves for years and managed to get through it. Throughout history, we've lived off the land, with hunter-gatherers finding it, catching it, killing it, cooking it and eating it. We survived.

Cultures around the world maintain these traditions and continue to thrive and survive.

But come to 21st century south Wales and we apparently need official assistance to make a dinner.

...and the people who need the tips really shouldn't be allowed access to money or sharp objects.

Tune in next week for advice on playing hide and seek on the M4, and not setting fire to yourself in case you get burned.

We where warned about these Interfering Busy Bodies and DoGooders back in the 1980's but they weren't in Goverment back then but just causing Aggravation to the Residents of people in local authority Areas such as Islington London(dubbed the Islington Trots)Now they are in Power we all suffering from their LOONY TUNES LEFT PC GARBAGE...Hopefully in a few Months time it will be "THATS ALL FOLKS!!" When they get booted out of Office and maybe just maybe we can return to some sort of Common Sense and Reallty Check in this Country!!

Gareth wrote:
Did i miss something when i lived away in the 90s? I mean, did the area get an objective one grant for a group labotomy or something; with the health and safety police taking the contract to look after what used to be termed as common sense?

We lived in caves for years and managed to get through it. Throughout history, we've lived off the land, with hunter-gatherers finding it, catching it, killing it, cooking it and eating it. We survived.

Cultures around the world maintain these traditions and continue to thrive and survive.

But come to 21st century south Wales and we apparently need official assistance to make a dinner.

...and the people who need the tips really shouldn't be allowed access to money or sharp objects.

Tune in next week for advice on playing hide and seek on the M4, and not setting fire to yourself in case you get burned.

Well Gareth, I agree with much of what you've said, but "common sense" or not, cases of food poisoning still costs the economy of this country around £1.5billion each year! Check out the Foods Standards Agency website, I think you'll find that with a bit of background info, the SWA could have put the article into a rather different perspective.

I've taken a look, Cymru, and I'm not convinced.

Quoting the official release: "...2% of people think they have suffered from festive food poisoning in the past five years."

So this publicly-funded campaign is targeting 0.4% of us this Christmas.

Putting this in perspective, nearly twice as many people (0.7%) will get injured falling over trying to put their trousers on this Christmas.

Surely if public safety was the issue, the money would be better spent on dressing tips?

Nice one, Gareth! I'm not sure about the calculations you've made and/or the accuracy of your statistics, but your post certainly "brightened up" the office this morning. I suppose a few dressing tips would benefit not only those potentially in danger of injuring themselves. Placing the fun aside though for a moment, and I do take your point concerning the "Big Brother" approach, food hygiene is a serious matter - especially these days as changes in traditional family roles, and the resulting increased market share of convenience foods, have led to the basic skills and kinds of knowledge required in storing and preparing fresh foods, being largely lost.

The stats, believe it or not, are right. We originally released it as part of a wider silly season claims-based story for an insurance client of mine.

The reason it sticks in my head is because we sold the story into the media using some actors - three dressed as client-branded health & safety police and one doctor - standing outside Canary Wharf with a small bed, giving hints and tips to all the journalists on their way to work. It was a fab photo opp and got some cracking coverage.

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I actually think you've got something with the 'changing traditional family roles' explanation. I suppose the microwave culture may make Christmas Day meal one of the only times people cook from scratch and eat together around the table.

Maybe the story would have made more of an impact on me if they'd dressed up the hints and tips as part of a wider, more media-friendly story.

If I'd been given free reign on this story, I think I would have brought in a relevant, media-friendly personality to lead on the changing face of the family dinner table.

They can comment on the general knowledge we are losing as a society, then focus on Christmas cooking as a prime example.

We could also find some lovely old ladies around the major media hubs to do some home-cooking for the local evening news progs; and also get the UK's oldest cook and the celebrity spokesperson on the daytime TV couches.

Now THAT'LL get the message over to the most people in the right way at the right time.

...but that's just me and my imaginary impractical budget!

Yes, Gareth, I agree. But, I'm afraid you'd need a Jamie Oliver sized budget to get that up and running.