Food Safety Month
September is Food Safety Education Month. Most of foodborne diseases are infections caused by a variety of bacteria, viruses, and parasites that can be found in contaminated food. There are four main steps to help keep food safe from these germs.
Know the 4 Steps to Food Safety
1) Clean
Keeping clean when cooking and preparing food is important. Remember to:
- Wash your hands before and after handling food
- Clean cutting boards and utensils
- Wash all surfaces that have come in contact with potentially hazardous foods
2) Separate
Separating different types of foods (like raw meats and ready-to-eat fruits) can help prevent cross-contamination.
- Use separate cutting boards for foods
- Keep raw meats away from other foods in your shopping cart
- Store ready-to-eat foods above raw meats and eggs in the refrigerator
3) Cook
Food is safely cooked when it reaches a high enough internal temperature to kill the harmful bacteria that cause foodborne illness. Use a food thermometer to measure the internal temperature of cooked foods.
See chart for the safe internal temperatures.
4) Chill
Chill foods quickly and keep them below 41°F to help keep foods safe. Also, store foods in refrigerator in proper order to help prevent cross contamination:
- Ready-to-eat and pre-cooked foods (store at top of fridge)
- Eggs, fish, whole meats (beef, pork, lamb)
- Ground beef, ground pork
- Poultry (store at bottom of fridge)
More Food Safety Resources