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Plating It Safe

A Market-to Mealtime Checklist to Help Keep Food Safe

TOP TEN FOOD-SAFETY MISTAKES

1. Unwashed hands and utensils
2. Inadequate cooking
3. Countertop thawing
4. Leftovers and doggie bags at room temperature
5. Unclean cutting board
6. Shared knife for raw meats and vegetables
7. Store-to-refrigerator lag time
8. Room-temperature marinating
9. Stirring-and-tasting spoon
10. Hide-and-eat Easter eggs

This brochure contains a checklist for each step in food handling—from grocery shopping through storing leftovers. It’s a guide to help you cook with care and confidence at home. After all, you are the best line of defense against foodborne illness. You are the final safety checkpoint.

Although America’s food supply is one of the safest in the world, millions of Americans suffer from some type of foodborne illness each year. Farmers, manufacturers, supermarkets and restaurants follow strict rules and regulations to help ensure safe and wholesome food for consumers. And they are closely monitored by government officials, as well as industry and trade organizations. New procedures and safeguards continue to be implemented.

These procedures end, however, when food goes into your shopping cart or car, or is delivered to your home or workplace. Most of the reported illnesses related to ‘‘bad food’’ are due to bacterial contamination. And nearly all the cases can be linked to improper food handling. This means they could have been prevented.

Bacteria are everywhere—in the air, soil, water, plants, animals and even in the human body. You can’t see, taste, or smell most bacteria. Some are beneficial, like bacteria that change milk into cheese or yogurt. But other bacteria can make you ill.

Hot temperatures can destroy harmful bacteria. Be sure to cook food thoroughly so the bacteria won’t survive. Remember to keep hot foods at 140°F or above. Never leave perishable food at room temperature more than two hours.New safe handling labels on raw meat and poultry products summarize the basic guidelines for keeping food safe.

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SAFETY CHECKLIST

Follow these simple measures to help protect yourself and your family from foodborne illness.

SHOPPING

• Shop for meat, poultry and seafood last. Place in plastic bags, when possible, to keep the packages from dripping onto other foods in your cart.
• Buy products labeled ‘‘keep refrigerated’’ only if they are stored in a refrigerated case and are cold to the touch.4 Feel frozen foods to make sure they are rock solid.
• Choose canned goods that are free of dents, cracks, rust or bulging lids; check packages for holes, tears and open corners.
• Purchase dated packages only if the ‘‘sell by’’ date has not expired.
• Have an ice chest in your car for groceries if time from store to home will exceed 30 minutes. Even short stops during hot weather may let your groceries warm up to unsafe temperatures.

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WHEN YOU STORE FOOD...

• Use a refrigerator thermometer to check that your refrigerator is cooling at 35° to 40°F. Your freezer should be at or below 0°F.
• Space items in your refrigerator and freezer so air can freely circulate.
• Freeze fresh meat, poultry and fish immediately if you don’t plan to use them within a few days. Overwrap packages with aluminum foil or heavy freezer wrap to make airtight.
• Wrap raw meat, poultry and fish or place in separate plastic bags and set on a plate on the lowest shelf of your refrigerator to keep juices from dripping onto other foods or refrigerator surfaces.
• Follow the ‘‘use by,’’ ‘‘keep refrigerated,’’ and ‘‘safe handling’’ information on package labels. If you cannot remember when a food was placed in the refrigerator, throw it out.
• Use refrigerated beef steaks, roasts, and deli meats within 3 to 4 days. All poultry, ground meat, and fish should be used within 1 to 2 days.
• Pack perishables in iced coolers when cleaning or defrosting your refrigerator or freezer.

BEFORE YOU COOK...

• Wash your hands with hot soapy water for at least 20 seconds before preparing food. If you stop to do something else, be sure to wash your hands again—especially after using the bathroom, changing a diaper, blowing your nose and touching pets.
• Cover any cuts or sores on your hands with a bandage, or use plastic gloves, if available. This protects you and the food.
• Keep everything that touches food clean. Bacteria can hitch rides around your kitchen on dirty utensils, sponges or dish cloths, plates or cutting boards, and unwashed hands.
• Keep raw meat, poultry and fish and their juices from coming into contact with other foods during preparation. Wash your hands and all utensils and surfaces with hot soapy water after contact with raw meat.
• Never chop fresh vegetables or salad ingredients on a cutting board that was used for raw meat without properly cleaning it first. If possible, use a separate cutting board for the sole preparation of raw meat, poultry and fish.
• Carefully wash cutting boards and knives with hot soapy water and then sanitize with a solution of household bleach and water. (Check bleach label for directions.) Some cutting boards can be cleaned in the dishwasher.
• Regularly clean refrigerator surfaces with warm soapy water.
• Thaw foods only in the refrigerator or microwave oven; never leave out at room temperature. When you thaw in a microwave, finish cooking immediately.
• Use a covered non-metallic container to marinate meat, poultry and seafood. Marinate in the refrigerator, not on the kitchen counter. Discard the leftover marinade that was in contact with the raw meat, or bring to a rolling boil for 1 minute before using on cooked meat.
• Wash all fresh fruits and vegetables with cold running water, using a brush to scrub, if necessary.
• Turn your face away and cover your mouth and nose with a tissue if you sneeze or cough while preparing food. Always wash hands afterwards.

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• Cook eggs until the yolk and white are firm, not runny. Throw away or modify recipes with uncooked or partially-cooked eggs.
• Do not eat raw cookie dough or taste any meat, poultry, fish or egg dish while it is raw or partially cooked. Never drink unpasteurized milk or milk products.
• Use a thermometer to take the guesswork out of cooking meat and poultry. Place the thermometer at the thickest portion of the meat, not touching bone, fat or the bottom of the pan. Here’s a chart to use as a guide:
• Roast meat or poultry at oven temperatures of 325°F or above. When cooking meats, avoid long, low temperatures which may encourage bacterial growth before cooking is complete.
• Never partially heat foods and then refrigerate or set aside to finish cooking later. Partially cooked foods may not reach a temperature high enough to destroy bacteria.
• Cook ground beef until no longer pink and juices show no pink color. (Internal temperature should be 160°F.) Beef roasts and steaks should be well-browned on the surface, but the interior may be slightly pink when cooked to 145°F (medium rare).
• When basting grilled meats, brush sauce on cooked surfaces, rather than raw meat. Be careful not to contaminate fully cooked meats by reusing leftover marinade or adding sauce with a brush previously used on raw meats. Bring marinades to a rolling boil for one minute for safe use on cooked meats.
• Stir, rotate and cover foods when microwaving to ensure even cooking. Check temperature with a ‘‘quick read’’ thermometer in at least three spots, and follow recommended standing times outside the microwave so the food completes cooking. Clean interior of microwave thoroughly after cooking.

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AT HOME...

• Always place cooked food in a clean dish for serving and use clean utensils. Never use the same unwashed plate that held raw meat, poultry or fish to serve the cooked meat.
• Do not allow any cooked food to sit out at room temperature for more than 2 hours.
• When serving from a buffet, keep cold foods on ice at a temperature below 40 degrees F, and keep hot foods about 140 degrees F until they are eaten. Do not mix fresh food with food that has already been out for serving.

AWAY FROM HOME...

• Carry lunches in an insulated container with a freeze-pack or include a frozen juice-box or small plastic bottle of frozen water. Keep away from direct sun.
• Pack pre-chilled picnic food in a cooler with a freeze-pack or ice. Do not use your cooler to chill room-temperature foods. When possible, use one cooler for beverages (opened often) and one for perishable foods (kept closed).
• Wrap raw meat, poultry and fish, or place in sealed storage bags or covered containers to avoid leakage onto other food in the cooler (or use a separate cooler). Use moistened towelettes before and after handling the raw meat, or bring a bottle filled with clean water and soap to wash hands and surfaces.
• Cut into the middle of hamburgers to see if the meat is no longer pink.
• At salad bars and buffets, check for a clean, sanitary appearance of serving containers and make sure cold foods are kept chilled and entrees are steaming hot.

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• Refrigerate cooked foods promptly after serving (within 2 hours after cooking). You don’t need to cool food first, but do divide large amounts of leftovers into small portions and place in shallow containers for quick chilling.
• Freeze leftovers that you won’t eat within a few days.
• Cover and reheat leftovers to 165 degrees F throughout or until steaming hot. Stir foods while you reheat them to ensure that all the food reaches the appropriate temperature. Reheat sauces, soups and gravies to a rolling boil for at least 1 minute before serving.
• Never taste leftover food that looks or smells strange to see if you can still use it. When in doubt, throw it out.
• Dispose of any potentially unsafe food in a garbage disposal or a tightly wrapped package so it cannot be eaten by people or animals.

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As with any illness, judgment is needed to determine if and when to seek medical care. If symptoms are severe (vomiting, diarrhea, fever or cramps) or the victim is very young, elderly, pregnant or already ill, call a doctor or go to the hospital immediately. It’s not always easy to tell if the problem is the result of flu or food poisoning.

You or your physician should report serious cases of foodborne illness to the local health department. If you think the food involved came from a restaurant or commercial outlet, you may be asked to keep the food refrigerated so officials can examine it later.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT SAFE FOOD HANDLING:

• USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline 1-800-535-4555
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 1-888-232-3228
• Your local health department

FOOD SAFETY WEBSITES:

• National Cattlemen’s Beef Association www.beef.org
• USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service www.usda.gov/agency/fsis/homepage.htm
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention www.cdc.gov
• Partnership for Food Safety Education www.fightbac.org

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is a sponsor of the Partnership for Food Safety Education and the FIGHT BAC!^TM public information campaign.

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Developed by:
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the Beef Board
In cooperation with U.S. Department of Agriculture/Food Safety and Inspection Service
Association of State and Territorial Public Health Nutrition Directors
Association of State and Territorial Directors of Health Promotion and Public Health Education

© 1998 NCBA 21-036 498600