Biltong and botulism?....

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

hi
a quick question that i'm wondering about for a long time.


does biltong made from turkey professionally has higher chance to have botulism than beef one?


i know the chances are generally very low anyway


TNX

 

[pepperhead212]

Does botulism show up on biltong sometimes? That's a type of jerky, if I recall, and I've never heard of it on jerky. Maybe if it was vacuum sealed, it could become anaerobic, and the conditions could be right for it?

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

thanks
i think there is a little chance for botulism.
it shouldn't make me not buying it as these south african style food is so good


my preferred meat is turkey because i feel more pity for big animals like cows


for years i thought to myself. why here in israel we don't have jerky.
but now we have something even better tho not cheap.... biltong...

 

[karadekoolaid]

Just to give you an idea, the highest incidences of botulism are found in Georgia and Russia. 3 cases per million inhabitants.
In the US, the statistics I just found talk about 110 cases in a year ( from a population of 333,500,000), of which over 70% are infant botulism.
I wouldn´t worry about biltong.

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

oh
that pretty rare..


i'm also wondering out of curiosity about turkey compared to beef.
i know that chicken in general are much more risky today than beef products..
am i right?



but thank you for really explaining how rare is this..


i hope i will send a photo of the biltong after i buy it..


it's much better than 'jerky' imo..

 

[GotGarlic]

Botulinum bacteria grow in an anaerobic (oxygen-free) environment. It's not a risk with dried foods open to the air and usually isn't a risk with meats. Salmonella would be a more likely source of food-borne illness with biltong or jerky, but that's a very low risk because salmonella, like most pathogens, needs moisture to reproduce.

 

[taxlady]

Botulinum bacteria grow in an anaerobic (oxygen-free) environment. It's not a risk with dried foods open to the air and usually isn't a risk with meats. Salmonella would be a more likely source of food-borne illness with biltong or jerky, but that's a very low risk because salmonella, like most pathogens, needs moisture to reproduce.

+1, I agree.

 

[HeyItsSara]

pretty sure it's limited to canned foods but i could be wrong

 

[GotGarlic]

pretty sure it's limited to canned foods but i could be wrong

It's most commonly associated with canned goods, but it can be a problem in other ways. I just gave a talk on culinary herbs tonight and mentioned that it's dangerous to try to make herb-infused oils at home because botulinum bacteria can reproduce in the anaerobic environment, producing botulinum toxin.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Botulinum bacteria, as was stated above, require anaerobic, moist conditions to flourish. That being said, the spores (little shell encased bacteria) can survive in raw honey. As infant digestive tracts aren't fully developed, those spores can activate in an infant's gut, and produce the toxin.

Botulinum bacteria are commonly found in soils throughout the world. Improperly cooked, and canned foods can allow them to grow in foods. For those infused oils, the herbs must be heated high enough to kill the bacteria before adding to the oil. Same with peppers, and, mushrooms used to infuse flavors into oils.

Dried meats are exposed to air, and oxygen. This inhibits the growth of the bacteria. Also, the meat is dried, and usually salted, which again protects against any kind of pathogens.

Ok, I've now repeated what the others have said. I hope I added something useful.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

 

[taxlady]

I didn't know what biltong was. I looked it up. Vinegar is used in its preparation. That lowers the pH, further lessening the likelihood of botulism.

 

[SEEING-TO-BELIEVE]

so anyway,

what are other more common risks are there in biltong except for the rarity of botulisim?