May 30, 2010

The Government of Canada’s Summer Food Safety Tips
The warm weather this spring finds many of us participating in outdoor barbeques, picnics and camping trips. The Government of Canada reminds Canadians that when planning outdoor activities that involve food, it’s important to remember that the risk of foodborne illnesses is greater in the summer because of the heat, humidity and the lack of conveniences found in kitchens, such as refrigeration and washing facilities.  Health Canada recommends the following steps to reduce your family’s risk of foodborne illnesses:

• Wash your hands with hot, soapy water for at least 20 seconds before handling food and after handling raw meats or poultry.
• When camping or going on a picnic, find out if there will be a source of clean water. If not, bring water for food preparation and cleaning.
• Always wash raw fruits and vegetables in clean water. You cannot tell whether foods carry surface bacteria by the way they look, smell or taste.
• Keep raw foods separate from cooked foods to avoid cross-contamination.
• Wash all plates, utensils and cutting boards that touched or held raw meat or poultry before using them again for cooked foods.
• Make sure you kill harmful bacteria by cooking meat until it reaches the proper temperature.
• Eat hot food hot, as bacteria can grow when food is allowed to cool down slowly.
• Keep cold food cold.
• Perishable foods that are normally in the refrigerator (such as luncheon meats, cooked meats and potato or pasta salads) must be kept in an insulated cooler with freezer packs or blocks of ice to keep it at 4 degrees Celsius or below. Discard all perishable foods once the ice or freezer packs in your cooler have melted.
• Refrigerate or freeze food the day before you pack it for a trip.
• When packing a cooler, put your meat or poultry on the bottom and then pack food in reverse order, so that the foods packed on top are the ones you expect to use first.
• Keep the cooler in the coolest part of the car and place it in the shade or shelter, away from direct sunlight. Keep the cooler closed as much as possible.

Follow the Government of Canada’s food safety tips and enjoy a safe and healthy summer!

For more information on the Government of Canada’s Summer Food Safety Tips, visit http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/kitchen-cuisine/summer-safety-salubrite-ete-eng.php and Barbeque Safety Tips at http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/kitchen-cuisine/barbecue-eng.php.