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Sources:
Karen Blakeslee, 785-532-1673, kblakesl@oznet.k-state.edu
Daniel Y.C. Fung, 785-532-1208, dfung@oznet.k-state.edu
http://www.mediarelations.k-state.edu/WEB/News/MediaGuide/fungbio.html
News release prepared by: Jennifer Newberry, 785-532-6415
Thursday,
June 30, 2005
SAFETY
TIPS FOR PICNICS AND COOKOUTS
MANHATTAN
-- The Fourth of July means heat and sun plus picnics and cookouts,
which can equal opportunities for food-borne illnesses.
To
keep your picnic safe, Kansas State University food safety experts
said the two keys are temperature control and hand washing.
"Those
two things account for a majority of food-borne illnesses,"
said Karen Blakeslee, K-State rapid response center coordinator.
She and Daniel Y.C. Fung, K-State professor in animal sciences and
industry, offer the following suggestions for keeping food safe:
*Keep
hot food hot and cold food cold. Cold food and drinks should be
kept in an ice chest, preferably two separate ones, with ice. Hot
food cooked at home should be insulated with a towel or insulated
food carrier.
*To
keep your hands clean, use a restroom sink or bring soap and washcloths
or hand sanitizers with you.
*When
cooking food, keep food preparation surfaces clean. Keep raw foods
like meat away from ready-to-eat foods, such as fresh vegetables
and salad.
*Keep
foods below 40 degrees or above 140 degrees. The time it takes for
bacteria to grow depends on the conditions, Blakeslee said. How
long food has been out at room temperature and the room temperature
itself can affect bacteria growth.
"What
we recommend is keeping foods below 40 degrees or above 140 degrees,"
Blakeslee said. "That temperature in between 40 and 140 is
what we call the temperature danger zone. That's where bacteria
really likes to grow."
*When
in doubt, use a food thermometer. The type of meat you're grilling
will depend on whether or not you can use color as a measure for
doneness. If grilling hamburgers, it's not a good idea to judge
doneness by color. Use a food thermometer and check the inside temperature
-- hamburgers should be cooked to 160 degrees. In most cases, you
can judge a steak's doneness by inside color. When in doubt, use
a thermometer and make sure to cook to 145 degrees.
"The
most common mistake when barbecuing is to undercook food and feed
it to people," Fung said. "If you don't have a thermometer,
look for steam coming out and do the famous Dr. Fung cheek test.
If your cheek cannot handle the heat of the steam, then the food
is safe to eat."
*When
meat is cooked, don't put it on the same plate that once held raw
meat -- use a clean one. In addition, don't use the same utensil
for handling raw and cooked meats.
*If
marinating any meat, discard the marinade after soaking the meat.
If you want to use some of the marinade as a dip, it should be heated
to boiling, otherwise it will contaminate the cooked meat.
*When
serving food, use clean utensils for each food. Don't mix utensils
and don't use one to serve multiple foods. Replace each utensil
after serving 15 people and continue serving with a clean one, to
prevent contamination. Also, do not taste and serve food with the
same utensil.
"Some
people tend to taste the food to see how delicious it is with a
utensil and use that same utensil to serve the food," Fung
said. "You may be contaminating your friend with your bad bacteria."
*Don't
let perishable foods, like meat or potato salad, sit out in the
heat for more than two hours. After such time, bacteria can begin
to grow. If the day is especially hot, food should not sit out for
more than one hour. Blakeslee recommends putting food back in the
cooler as soon as you're done eating.
"People
tend to take food to the picnic ground and leave it at normal temperature
or higher while they play games, chat, hike and then, about four
hours later, come and get the food and eat," Fung said. "During
this time, pathogenic bacteria, if present, will have a chance to
grow to a high number and may cause food-borne infection."
*If
making homemade ice cream, be cautious about using raw eggs as they
could contain salmonella. One option is to make a cooked egg custard
at home, chill it and use the egg custard to make ice cream at the
picnic site.
If
food is not handled or cooked properly, food-borne illness can occur.
Depending on the type of bacteria, it can happen within half an
hour of eating contaminated food to even days later. The two most
common symptoms are diarrhea and an upset stomach. Other symptoms
can include chills, fever, nausea, weakness, dizziness and vomiting,
Blakeslee said.
"A
lot of people shrug it off and think it's the 24-hour flu when it
could be a food-borne illness," she said.
If
you suspect food is the cause, go see your doctor. In addition,
keep any leftover food so it can be tested. In most cases, the food-borne
illness will run its course and most symptoms will be gone in a
day or two.
Blakeslee
said food-borne illnesses can be prevented as long as people remember
to wash their hands and keep an eye on food temperature.
"Foods
may be perfectly safe coming out of the store," Blakeslee said.
"It's what the consumer does when they get it home. There's
still a possibility that something can go wrong once you get the
food home. That's why it's important to use some common sense, good
food safety practices and have a safe picnic."
For
more information about grilling safety, see http://www.oznet.k-state.edu
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