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According to the NSW Food Authority and the Sydney South West Area Health Service (SSWAHS) Public Health Unit, there is an outbreak of gastroenteritis involving 98 people, many of whom ate food products from a Homebush hot bread shop over the weekend.

So far eighteen people have been hospitalized, and public health officers are currently interviewing all cases.

In the majority of cases interviewed so far, many reported having eaten either pork rolls or chicken rolls from the a Vietnamese bakery called the French Golden Hot Bread shop in Homebush West, opposite the Flemington train station. So far, thirteen cases have been confirmed as having salmonella infection. Incidentally, food poisoning involving Vietnamese Pork roll has occurred a few times in the past from other similar bakeries around the country.

SSWAHS Public Health Unit warns anyone who may have eaten these food products from the bread shop between Friday 23 March and Tuesday 27 March to be vigilant for the symptoms of salmonella infection and seek medical care.

Common symptoms of salmonella infection include diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever, nausea and vomiting. Symptoms usually last four to seven days.

The NSW Food Authority has advised that it sent inspectors into the bread shop to examine food safety practices and to sample foods for laboratory testing. It has placed a prohibition order on the bread shop restricting it from producing or selling the implicated foods. This basically shuts down the shop.

Dr Leena Gupta, SSWAHS Director of Public Health, recommends that anyone who contracts gastroenteritis should keep up their fluid intake, stay home and not return to work or school until 48 hours after symptoms have stopped.

People suffering symptoms should also not prepare food for others until at least 48 hours after they have completely recovered from the illness.