Public Health England has identified bacteria carrying an antibiotic - resistant gene , mcr-1 in three UK farms , and in human E. coli and salmonella infections . veterinary doctors thought it may take up to 20 years for the gene to arrive in the UK after being found in Chinese livestock and raw meat samples . Although health officials have described the risk to public health as " very low " , there are still concerns that the presence of bacteria resistant to the antibiotic may pick up further resistance from other bacteria , making infections untreatable by all available antibiotics . Thorough cooking of affected food is recommended in order to kill the identified organisms .
Public Health England has identified bacteria carrying an antibiotic-resistant gene named mcr-1 in three UK farms, and in human E. coli and salmonella infections. UK doctors thought it may take up to three years for the gene to arrive in the UK after being found in Chinese livestock and raw meat samples. Although health officials have assessed the risk to public health as "very low", there are still concerns that the strains of bacteria resistant to the antibiotic may pick up further resistance from other bacteria, making infections untreatable by all available antibiotics. Thorough cooking of affected food is recommended in order to kill the identified organisms.