Summertime Food Safety

Summertime means picnics in the park, vacation trips by car and outdoor grilling. It also means people are on the go and more food is eaten away from home. Because temperatures are warmer, we have to be especially careful about buying, storing, preparing and eating food in the summertime.

Here are some suggestions to prevent food contamination.

AT THE STORE
· Buy meat and other perishables at the end of your shopping trip, take them directly home and store properly.
· If buying deli meats or cooked meats for a picnic, take them home and refrigerate promptly. Or put them in the picnic cooler.
·Purchase extra ice or ice packs for your insulated cooler.

IN YOUR KITCHEN
· Always wash hands before preparing food and keep work surface and utensils clean, washing them in hot, soapy water.
· Freeze frankfurters and hamburger patties if you plan to carry them to a grill-site. They will help keep other foods chilled.
· Do not thaw meat or other foods on the kitchen counter; allow time to thaw meat, wrapped, in the refrigerator or thaw and cook at the same time.
· Do not partially cook or microcook meat for later grilling. Cook food completely, if cooking ahead, then refrigerate, pack in cooler and reheat on the grill.

PACKING PICNIC FOOD
· Use well-insulated coolers that are large enough for the ice packs or ice plus your food.
· Pack hot foods in an insulated container so they will stay hot.
· Pack refrigerated food just before leaving home and pack it in reverse order of use.
· Bring along disposable alcohol-based hand wipes so you can keep hands clean while preparing food on site.
· If grilling, be sure to pack clean plates or extra paper plates for the cooked foods, to avoid cross contamination or raw and cooked food.
· For picnic sandwiches, experts say it’s safer to prepare them in advance and pack them cold. The more food in handled, the more changes there are for spreading bacteria.

TRAVEL TIPS
· Store cooler in the car rather than in the trunk, which is hotter.
· Keep cooler out of the sun, in the car and at the picnic site.
· Avoid opening the cooler frequently.

ON-SITE COOKING AND CLEAN-UP
· Keep food in cooler until ready to cook and/or serve it.
· USDA/FSIS recommends that hamburgers should be cooked to 160° F or until they are only slightly pink.
· Use a clean plate and utensils for serving grilled meats.
· In hot weather, do not leave meat and other perishable foods out of the refrigerator or cooler for more than an hour.
· Leftovers may be a problem. Discard if they have been out of the cooler for long or if you do not have sufficient ice to keep them cold on the way home. It’s better to be safe than sorry.

picture courtesy of flickr.com

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