Will I get salmonella now?

[whydididothatt]

Cooking and I've just done something really stupid. I'm normally so meticulous around raw chicken I don't know why I did this. I pricked a plastic wrapper of raw chicken to cut open the packet with a knife. Then used said knife to chop cheese and vegetables and ate some as I was chopping them. Then stopped dead when I realised what I'd just done. Could I get salmonella now?

You'd be very unlucky, the risk is low.

Probably not salmonella, but approx 75% of raw chicken is contaminated with camphobacter.

Sorry - camphobacter

Arggh stupid phone - 3rd time lucky - campylobacter

If all you did was prick the packet you'll be fine. I wouldn't think twice about it. If you actually cut the chicken with it then there's a much higher risk.

I pricked the knife into the packet and drew it along to cut the plastic but it didn't touch the chicken I don't think.

About 70 something percent of supermarket pre packed raw chicken is infected with champylobacter (sp?) and it would have been all on the inside packaging not just the actual chicken. That being said, your chances of getting ill are quite small, given the limited exposure of the knife to the chicken and the fact immune systems in healthy people should be well able to deal with a small amount of the bacteria. You'd be very unlucky if you got mild food poisoning, but the chances of anything serious are so nominally slim, and if you do start to feel ill and begin vomiting a trip to the doctors and knowing the source will probably make it quick/easy to treat.

Much more likely to be campylobacter poisoning.