is trichinosis still a potential problem like it used to be? (diet, contact)

[nickerman]

I ate pork chop and it had a few little very light redish areas in it. Not much. I had cooked it good but I wonder if trichinosis is still a worry like it used to be.

[jtur88]

No. Raw pork is safe now. Rats are a vector in trichinosis. Free-range hogs get trichinosis from eating dead rats, and then humans can get it from eating the hogs.

But retail cuts of pork never come from free-range animals anymore, always from hog farms where their diet is strictly controlled, so the risk of trichinosis in retail meat is zero.

The CDC reports about a dozen cases every year, but those patients always turn out to be immigrants from third world countries who raise hogs on their property.

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6401a1.htm

[suzy_q2010]

It depends. Meat from hogs raised in confinement is low risk. Animals that are raised outdoors and that might have contact with rodents or other wildlife might be at risk.

Pork may appear a little pink and still be safe to eat. read the comments, too. There is more info there.

When is Your Pork Roast “Done”? | The Slow Cook