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Ninety-five percent of food-borne illness is probably preventable.
Here are some tips on what you can do:
At the Store
Don’t let juice from raw meat, poultry, or fish drip on
to your hands or any fresh foods in your grocery cart. Raw juices
may contain bacteria. Shop for cold and frozen products last. Use
a cooler for the ride home, especially during the summer or if you’re
running other errands. Avoid unpasteurized milk and juice, and egg
nog or other foods made with raw eggs.
In the Kitchen
Always wash your hands in hot, soapy water before preparing
and after handling raw meat, poultry, seafood, or eggs.
Cook all meat and poultry—or casseroles that contain meat
or poultry—at a minimum oven temperature of 325°F. Temperature
less than this cannot kill some bacteria.
Cook meats thoroughly, but don’t overcook them. Heat kills
bacteria, but too much heat causes meat, poultry, and fish to form
possibly carcinogenic compounds. Use a meat thermometer in the thickest
part of the meat, but don’t insert it until the outside is
seared or it could carry bacteria to the interior. The USDA says
to cook your meat at least to these internal temperatures: beef,
lamb, or veal roasts, steaks, and chops ~145°F; ground beef,
pork, lamb, or veal and fresh pork ~160°F; ground chicken or
turkey or stuffing ~165°F; poultry ~180°F.
Keep your refrigerator at 40°F and your freezer at 0°F.
Don’t store raw meats or fish in your refrigerator for more
than 24 hours.
Thaw frozen food in the fridge or in a microwave, not at room temperature.
Never put cooked food on the plate used when it was raw.
To keep bacteria from growing, put your sponge or scouring pad
in the dishwasher every time you run it.
* Courtesy of CSPI, Center for Science in the Public
Interest
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