Undercooked Duck Might Be Just As Risky As Undercooked Chicken

Think again before you eat undercooked duck — it could pose the same health risks as undercooked chicken.

Consuming undercooked duck could lead to food poisoning, according to The Guardian. Raw duck is often contaminated with the bacteria campylobacter, which may cause diarrhea, fever, and abdominal pain.

The Food Standards Agency in the U.K. noted that this is not new information, but that there is a common misconception that duck does not need to be cooked all the way through. It may not be safe to even eat duck cooked medium-rare, so treat duck the way you do chicken.

The CDC notes that campylobacter leads to an estimated 1.3 million cases of food poisoning each year, and these incidents are much more common in the summertime.

Much of the research done with campylobacter is associated with chickens. However, The Guardian notes that in 2005, Public Health England found campylobacter in 50 percent of duck meat. The bacteria are found on the skin and breast of the meat. It is recommended that consumers cook the duck until there is no pink and that they be cautious when rinsing poultry at home, because doing so can cause bacteria to spread on kitchen surfaces.