1:43pm UK, Monday June 09, 2008

Hygiene experts say more than 120,000 cases of food poisoning are expected over just three months this summer.

180 barbecue BBQ generic

The ever-popular barbecue can spell trouble

The Food Standards Agency is urging people to take care in the kitchen and when staging barbecues.

It released the figures to mark its GermWatch campaign, formerly known as Food Safety Week.

The campaign aims to cut the number of food poisoning cases, which cost the economy more than £1.5 billion a year and double during the summer months.

Dr Andrew Wadge, the FSA's chief scientist, said: "This is just a snapshot of the two most common food poisoning bugs.

"But with enough cases of salmonella and campylobacter to fill Wembley Stadium in just three months, this summer might be pretty unpleasant for some people.

"Even worse, it could prove fatal for vulnerable groups like the elderly.

"Despite the picture painted by these statistics, admitting the germs might have come from your own home remains a taboo subject.

"Whether it's because of the hot weather, undercooked meat on the barbecue or people playing fast and loose with use-by dates, food poisoning shoots up over the summer and could make your mealtime a real horror story."

Dr Wadge said the campaign aimed to dispel myths that food poisoning "only comes from that dodgy takeaway".

Latest figures show the first increase in annual cases since 2000, the FSA said.

Despite this, a recent survey showed three quarters of the public had never heard of campylobacter, and 82% of people thought they were unlikely to get food poisoning at home.

Another 89% of people did not store raw meat properly and 63% did not wash their hands after handling raw meat or fish.