SUMMERTIME FOOD SAFETY ADVICE FOR JULY 4TH PICNICKERS

MANHATTAN -- As the Fourth of July rolls around, so do outdoor barbecues and picnics at area lakes. However, because of the warmer summer temperatures, extra precautions need to be taken in handling food safely.

Karen Penner, extension specialist and professor of foods and nutrition at Kansas State University, gives some expert advice on food safety for summertime picnicking.

* Keep hot food hot. If you're going to prepare barbecued food or take warm food with you to the lake or to a picnic site, make sure it's piping hot when it's put into containers, and that it's insulated.

* Keep cold food cold. Make sure you have things packed well in ice. If you plan to cook raw meat or food at the picnic site, keep them packed in ice at 40 degrees or lower.

* Sometimes people will make fried chicken at home or pick it up at a fast food restaurant and bring that to their picnic. Be sure to eat it immediately, or if made at home, chill it thoroughly and then pack it in a cooler with ice and plan to eat it cold later on.

* Avoid using raw eggs in homemade ice cream by making an ice cream custard. Using this method, eggs, milk and sugar are cooked and made into a custard on the stove before the rest of the ingredients are added. Or use a pasteurized egg product that you can buy at the supermarket. Because they are pasteurized, you can use them in your standard ice cream recipe.

* Don't use the same platter when placing meat on the grill and taking it off. If you have raw meat on a platter and then put the meat on the grill, use a clean platter for meat just coming off the grill. This prevents cross-contamination of cooked meat and raw meat juices.

* Be sure to wash your hands. If you're at home and you're barbecuing in the backyard, make sure after you've handled the raw meat that you wash your hands thoroughly with water as hot as you can stand, and scrub with soap and water for 20 seconds. If you're out at a picnic site, take some wipes that you can wipe your hands with if there's no running water or other hand washing facility around.

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June 1997