– Chances are you will be entertaining at least once or
twice during this holiday season. Now is a good time to
review some food safety rules so that you will know how to
keep your family and guests safe from food borne illnesses.
How would you answer the following:
* When preparing and cooking food at home, how often do
you wash your hands with soap and water before you handle
the food?
* The last time you prepared a meal with fresh fruits or
vegetables using dishes or utensils (for example, knives),
did you switch cutting utensils and clean your cutting board
when switching from vegetables to a different food product,
like meat or bread?
* The last time that you cooked raw meat, poultry or
seafood on an indoor or outdoor grill or barbecue, what did
you do with the dish (plate or other cookware) that held the
raw meat, poultry or seafood?
To see how your answers stack up, visit a new Web site
called meatsafety.org that features a quiz to assess whether
you’re a “food safety star” or a “kitchen calamity” when it
comes to following safety guidelines. The Web site is a
project of the American Meat Institute, a trade association
representing America’s meat and poultry industry, and is an
important effort to ensure that dining is a pleasant and
healthy experience for you and your family.
Turkey Trivia.
For those who consider themselves the diva of kitchen
cleanliness, the quiz might be a sobering exercise. For
instance, although most turkeys have recommended cooking
times printed on the package, cooking experts say turkeys
should be prepared with a meat thermometer because even
experienced cooks can be overwhelmed by the size and
dimensions of handling such a large entrée. “A thermometer
is one of the best investments you can make for a happy
Thanksgiving,” says Dr. Randy Huffman, vice president of
scientific affairs at the American Meat Institute
Foundation. “As USDA says, it’s safe to bite when the
temperature is right.”
Your Dinner Guests
Another sure-fire step for ensuring a safe meal is to
consider who will be dining. What many people fail to
realize is that while the bacteria that can result from
improper handling may have limited, or no effect on healthy
adults, those very agents could prove dangerous, or lethal,
to pregnant women, infants or those with compromised immune
systems. “Many of us can eat foods that contain listeria,
which can be found in a wide array of products, with little
or no side effects,” says Dr. Michael Doyle, professor of
food microbiology at the University of Georgia. “But those
who are receiving immunosuppressant drugs because of a
transplant or are receiving cancer therapy, which suppresses
the immune system, could be highly susceptible and become
seriously ill.” For these reasons, deli meats and hot dogs
should always be reheated before serving to
immunocompromised and pregnant people.
Experts also agree that ground products like hamburgers,
turkey burgers and fresh sausage should always be cooked to
160 degrees Fahrenheit.
There is plenty of information you need to know about the
most loved (or disliked!) part of nearly every meal:
leftovers. According to meatsafety.org, leftovers should be
chilled immediately -- not left out to cool -- before
refrigerating. They should also be stored in shallow dishes
to promote rapid cooling and avoid bacterial growth. And
don’t forget to ensure that they reach an internal
temperature of 165 degrees when reheating them.
For Other Palates
Finally, for those who wish to delve into more “meatier”
issues, the site devotes an entire section on commonly asked
questions about the use of antibiotics to keep livestock
healthy, genetic modification of foods, the use of hormones
in food animal nutrition and common food additives, like
sodium nitrite.
Have a safe and happy holiday season. For more
information, visit www.meatsafety.org.
Courtesy of ARA Content
