By: Katie Burns Date: 9/15/09
September is
Food Safety Education Month, and it’s a great time to brush up on your food safety practices to protect yourself and your loved ones from foodborne illness. While you may be familiar with the four basic practices from the Partnership for Food Safety Education's
“Fight Bac” campaign, did you know that the theme of the 2009 Food Safety Education Month is “Food Safety Thrives When You Focus on Five?” Read on for a refresher on the original four and to learn about number five.
- Clean: Be sure to wash hands for 20 seconds with soap under running water throughout preparing and before consuming foods. Also, disinfect surfaces and utensils before and after use. Using a chlorine bleach solution of one tablespoon of liquid chlorine bleach to one gallon of water is a great way to be sure it’s sanitized.
- Separate: Keep raw meat and poultry separate from ready-to-eat foods like vegetables to avoid cross contamination. One way to do this is to use separate cutting boards and knives when preparing these foods.
- Cook: Always cook your meals to a safe minimum internal temperature to kill any present bacteria. A food thermometer is the most accurate way to tell if the food has reached the proper temperature. Color is not a reliable indicator.
- Chill: It is important to store and refrigerate perishable foods promptly. Under normal conditions, foods need to be refrigerated within two hours, but if the temperature is over 90 degrees Fahrenheit it must be done within an hour. This rule applies to foods recently purchased from the store or foods that have been sitting out for a meal.
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These are probably familiar and of course you practice them every time you prepare and consume foods! However, there is another key food safety practice that you should follow:
- PURCHASE! When maneuvering the grocery store, plan to buy your meat, poultry, seafood, and other perishable items last to keep them refrigerated as long as possible. Remember to put the meat, poultry, and fish products in plastic bags available in the produce section and keep them separate from the rest of the ready-to-eat foods in your cart. For non-perishable items like canned goods, make sure the packages aren’t damaged. Cans should not be dented or bulging and boxes should not have damaged packaging. Once you’ve checked out, try to go straight home to get put perishable foods in the refrigerator or freezer as soon as possible. If the temperature is particularly warm, over 90 degrees Fahrenheit, consider bringing along a cooler or an ice pack to keep these perishables cold until you make it home.
I hope this serves as reminder of what you can do to keep yourself and your loved ones safe from foodborne illness.
Do you follow these practices everyday? What gets in your way when you are unable to follow these food safety practices?