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Food Safety

Cross-contamination occurs when microorganisms that are naturally found in one food are transferred to another food. Microorganisms include fungi, bacteria, and viruses. This can easily happen when you shop for, transport, store, or prepare food. If food is not stored or cooked correctly, cross-contamination can occur and cause food borne illness, (also known as “food poisoning”).

Cross-contamination can happen in many ways. Transfer of bacteria from raw meats to uncooked foods, such as produce, is one of the main causes of cross-contamination. For example, bacteria from a package of raw ground beef can leak onto the lettuce you also happen to have in your grocery cart. However, bacteria can also be transferred to food from work surfaces or often from a person’s hand.

Food borne illness can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and other symptoms. While food borne illness hardly affects some people, it can result in serious illness or even death in others.

The good news is that cross-contamination is easily prevented. Proper handling of food is the key to preventing cross-contamination. Here are some tips:

  • Separate meats from foods that are eaten raw—such as produce—in your grocery cart, at the checkout, and during food preparation.
  • Keep meats in sealed plastic bags or containers, and store them below the produce in the refrigerator. If the meat leaks, this will prevent the produce from becoming contaminated.
  • Double-bag meats. Many meat departments have plastic bags available so that juices do not leak onto other foods.
  • Refrigerate or freeze foods as soon as possible after returning from the grocery store.
  • If you know you need to run errands after grocery shopping, bring a cooler along for storing food.
  • Make sure you always refrigerate perishable foods within two hours after shopping or within one hour if outside temperatures are hotter than 90° F or 32.2° C.
  • Clean and sanitize (using antibacterial cleaner, hot soapy water or 1 tablespoon bleach to 1 gallon of water) all knives, cutting boards, counters, and other equipment that comes in contact with raw meat.
  • Make sure to wash dishcloths or sponges often in the dishwasher or in the “hot” cycle of your washing machine.
  • Wash your hands with soap and warm water for 20 seconds between handling produce and raw meat.
  • Never place food meant for consumption on a plate that has had raw meat sitting on it.
  • Use extra care when cooking with marinades. If the marinade or barbeque sauce was in contact with raw meat, boil it to kill bacteria before applying it to cooked meat.

References:

National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. ServeSafe Essentials. 3rd ed. Chicago, IL: National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation; 2004.

US Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. Food Safety A to Z Reference Guide. Available at: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/a2z-toc.html. Accessed August 6, 2008.

US Dept of Agriculture. Food Safety and Inspection
Service fact sheets. Available at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Fact_Sheets/index.asp.
Accessed August 6, 2008.

US Dept of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service. Kitchen Companion. Available at: www.fsis.usda.gov/PDF/Kitchen_Co mpanion.pdf. Accessed August 6, 2008.

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