can you get ill from touching packaging?

[Jessie1995]

Not sure this is correct thread so apologies if not! I suffer with emetaphobia with meats etc! Anyway this may sound super silly to some!
but can you get I’ll from touching packaging of meat that’s been left out ready to chuck? My partner last night left salmon on the side ( still packaged unopened vaccum packed ) this morning I’ve found it and picked up to chuck away as it’s obviously been out all night.

any chance I could get I’ll from the packaging from it being left out for 12 hours?

thanks! ( sorry if I sound silly haha)

No

No. Definitely not.

No, if it’s still sealed you’ll be fine.

No, and the salmon will still be ok to eat if your kitchen is cool.

I'm a fellow emetophobe, especially with raw meat and fish but wouldn't think twice about this! You'll be fine :)

Thank you so much! It’s horrible isn’t it but sometimes your anxiety with it just goes down random routes of worrying on things! So through packaging even though it’s raw it would be absolutely fine? ☺️

If you're worried about germs/bacteria getting OUT of sealed packaging... aren't you also worried about what might be going IN the other way?

Oh I do haha! I worry about food things quite a lot! I don’t really eat meat and that’s my biggest trigger really!

It really is. I went through a long period of being vege for fear of it. I'm much much better now though. Still use disposable gloves for prepping meat though.

Honestly in a sealed packet you'll be completely fine. In the same way you would if you picked it up in the super market!

Maybe if you licked the whole thing inside and out...

Even if there was a risk, which there isn’t, washing your hands would eliminate it.

If it was left out to defrost from the freezer it should still be OK, unless your house is boiling hot so no need to throw it away without checking.

It's possible the outside of the package was contaminated during packing or by other people picking it up in the supermarket (with dirty hands) or wherever, but just wash your hands afterwards.

If it's been in the freezer it probably got sterilised by the cold anyway.

I mean if you opened it and licked it sure, maybe. Although honestly I'm the opposite of you and probably far too lax with food safety, I probably would've cooked it and eaten it if it'd only been out overnight.

If you just chucked it in the bin then washed your hands you're fine! Very unlikely to be anything on the outside and even if there was, you'll have mitigated that with hand washing.

Tell your partner to stop leaving meat out on the side! Especially as it's something you have issues with. If nothing else it's wasteful, but it's also quite thoughtless when you have a partner with specific concerns around certain types of food.

Harmless but sure wash your hands anyway if it makes you feel better.