A survey carried out for the Food and Drink Federation found that most members of the public are aware of the names of the major food poisoning bugssalmonella, E.coli 0157 and campylobacter. However when it came to protecting themselves and their families, their personal hygiene was lacking.

Forty-two percent of the 2,000 interviewed did not always wash their hands after contact with pets, and more than half did not wash before eating. Almost one in three men (31%) and 17% of women confessed to not washing their hands after going to the toilet. Perhaps most shockingly, a quarter of men and 17 % of women did not always wash their hands before preparing food!

Prof Hugh Pennington, a microbiologist from the University of Aberdeen said: There will be those who accuse us of being patronising by focusing on something as basic as handwashing. I say to them the next time you meet someone and shake their hand, there's a one in five chance that they are one of those who do not always wash their hands after going to the toilet!