Handling Food & Foodborne Diseases
by Dr. Deryck Pattron
Handling food is positively correlated with the risk of food borne diseases. This means that foods handled under unsanitary conditions and under inappropriate conditions of temperature and time tend to spoil faster and pose an ever increasing health risk to consumers and the general public. It therefore important that safe food handling practices be adopted and implemented so as to prevent, reduce and eliminate pain and unwarranted suffering and the economic burden of food bone diseases. Food handling safety practices must adopt a “farm to fork” approach to ensure safety of the entire food chain thereby ensuring public health safety. The following tips are provided for handling food safely in order to prevent or reduce the incidence of food borne diseases.
Taking food home safely • Do not keep chilled or frozen food for more than 45 minutes in a hot car. Use a cooler or ice pack for these foods. • Raw meat should be packed in a separate bag from other foods to prevent leakage and contamination of other foods.
Storing food safely • Keep foods in airtight containers. • Keep foods covered. • Keep shelves clean and sanitary. • Temperature in fridge should be between 2 and 4 °C. • Leftover hot food should be placed in the fridge as soon it has stopped steaming and used within 2 days. Beyond 2 days, throw it out. • Only freeze fresh good quality foods. • Only freeze small amounts of food at a time to avoid uneven freezing in the middle. • Freezing temperatures should be between -15 °C to -18 °C.
Hand hygiene key to preventing cross contamination of food • Wash hand thoroughly with plenty of soap and water for 20 seconds or more and dry with clean paper towel for 20 seconds. • Wash and dry hands: before and after preparation of food, after handling raw meat, after going to the toilet, after touching parts of the body, after touching animals or pets, after gardening, after handling rubbish and whenever the need arises. • Pathogens often transmitted by food contaminated by infected persons include: Calicivirus, Hepatitis A virus, Salmonella Typhi, Shigella species, Staphylococcus aureus, and Staphylococcus pyogenes. • Pathogens occasionally transmitted by food contaminated by infected persons include: Campylobacter jejuni, Cryptosporidium parvum, Entamoebia Histolytica, Escherichia Coli, Giardia lambia, Salmonella, Taenia Solium, Vibrio cholerae and Yersina entercolitica.
Food safety in the kitchen • Always use clean utensils when preparing food. • Use separate chopping boards for raw and foods to be cooked. • Avoid coughing or sneezing over food. • Do not allow pets near food. • Cover food to protect from flies and insects. • Infected persons should not prepare food.
Cooking food safely • Never thaw frozen food at room temperature. Frozen foods should be thawed in the fridge overnight. • Preheat oven so food cooks as quickly as possible. • Make sure that food is cooked and steaming hot right through to the middle. • Eggs should be well done. • Vegetables should be washed thoroughly before cooking. • Eat cook food immediately while it is still hot, do not leave it to stand at room temperature.
Dr. Deryck Pattron may be contacted at N/A ddpattron@tstt.net.tt. Click here to view more of their articles.
Dr Deryck D. Pattron is a Public Health scientist and specialist in Management in the Ministry of Health, Trinidad.
Food Safety: What is hiding in your food?
by Margie Geiser
As we head into the summer season, the number of barbeques and picnics increases. But this means more foods sitting out and shared by multiple people. This is the time that we all need to pay particular attention to the fact that food safety is NOT something to be taken lightly. Although just the thought of suffering from nausea, vomiting and severe diarrhea should be enough to motivate people to take food safety seriously, often people don’t think about it until it’s too late.
Over 250 organisms are known to cause foodborne illnesses. The causes of foodborne illness include viruses, bacteria, parasites, toxins, metals, and prions, and the symptoms of foodborne illness range from mild gastroenteritis to life-threatening neurologic, hepatic, and renal syndromes. In the United States, foodborne diseases have been estimated to cause 6 million to 81 million illnesses and up to 9,000 deaths each year.
Keeping track of people who actually suffer from foodborne illness is complicated by several factors. The first is that many cases are not ever reported. If you are sick, but not sick enough to see your doctor or be hospitalized, it’s unlikely you would report it to the CDC. However, the CDC requests that you do report it if you do suspect you suffered from food illness after eating at a restaurant. There are many cases where this reporting helped stop a potential serious outbreak.
A foodborne disease outbreak is defined as a group of people developing the same illnesses after ingesting the same food. If you think you or others became ill from eating the same food, please report this outbreak to your local (city or county) health department . By investigating outbreaks, public health officials learn about problems in food production that lead to illness. Applying what is learned in the investigation of one outbreak can help to prevent many future illnesses.
Second, many pathogens transmitted through food are also spread through water or from person to person, thus obscuring the role of foodborne transmission. Finally, some proportion of foodborne illness is caused by pathogens or agents that have not yet been identified and thus cannot be diagnosed. The importance of this final factor cannot be overstated. Many of the pathogens of greatest concern today (e.g., Campylobacter jejuni, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, Cyclospora cayetanensis) were not recognized as causes of foodborne illness just 20 years ago.
Do you know how long that potato salad has sat out? Do you know what may have stopped by to ‘visit’ your container of mayo salad dressing topping that’s on the table, next to the hot dogs? Never take food safety lightly. Just to emphasize the point, spend some time on this site from a mother who lost her daughter to food poisoning: http://www.ideamarketers.com/toolbox/“http://www.geocities.com/tysca66/kelly.html”.
Here are some tips how you can practice food safety at your summer barbeques and picnics:
Wash hands. Frequently wash your hands – before and after eating. If you anticipate no running water available where you are, be sure to pack a waterless hand sanitizer in your bag. Remind family members to do the same.
Check that cold foods are cold. Be certain that foods you are eating are as cold as they should be. Be sure bowls of cold food are nesting in bowls filled with ice.
Check how the meats are cooked. Before biting into a burger – break it open to be sure it looks thoroughly cooked – brown in the middle. Be sure you do not eat chicken that has pink inside.
Pay attention to how food is served. Check that each salad or plate of food has its own serving utensils.
Eat once food is served. Eating once food is brought out lessens the chance of bacteria growing as it sits out.
Ask your host. Finally – if you have any questions about how the food was prepared or how long something has been out – ASK. Chances are your host or hostess will want to assure you that she has taken appropriate food-safety precautions as she prepared for the barbecue.
Summer is a great time to get together with friends and family and enjoy some summer foods – just be sure to take those necessary precautions.
Margie Geiser may be contacted at http://www.megfit.com/ info@1stva.com. Click here to view more of their articles.
Marjorie Geiser helps people overcome the confusion and distress they may feel when trying to add healthy eating and fitness into their busy lives. She offers a free, monthly newsletter on various topics of health. She is a Registered Dietitian, Personal Trainer and Life Coach. To learn more about her services, go to her website at http://megfit.com/ or email her at margie@megfit.com.
Creating a Baking Center to Store Your Baking Staples
by Donna Rivera-Loudon
Learn how to create an easy baking center in your kitchen to keep your food fresh and the bugs out. This is so important in the summer when critters are looking for a cool dark place.
It can be so frustrating when we go to cook or bake what's on today's menu only to find the bugs have got in our main ingredients or that the ingredients have gone bad. How do we keep these staples nice and fresh and bugless. My solution is Tupperware containers. I learned how to create a custom kitchen with Modular Mate containers from Tupperware. Not only do they keep the food fresh longer, but they also tend to keep the critters out while saving space in my kitchen cabinets. In this article I am going to attempt to explain to you, step-by-step, how you can also use Modular Mates to organize your baking staples while keeping them fresh.
Step one is to consider the height of containers you want to use. To do this, measure the height space available for the shelf you plan to use for your baking center. Deduct about three inches from the top so that removing and replacing the containers will be easy. If the fit is too snug, it will be difficult to take the containers in and out of the cabinet. Once you determine the height space you have available to use, determine which modular mates size will fit. These containers come in five different heights. I have listed them below.
Height One: 2 1/4" high
Height Two: 4 1/2" high
Height Three: 6 3/4" high
Height Four: 9" high
Height Five: 11 1/4" high
Determine if your available shelf space is Height one, two, three, four, or five. Once you determine this, you can begin to build your custom baking center. You can combine sizes. For example, if your available shelf space is 12" you would specify your shelf as Height Four. Height five does not give you enough room to take containers in and out of your cabinet. What is nice about the Modular Mates is you can combine sizes to equal your shelf height. For example, 2 Height Two's will equal a four shelf. Or 1 Height One and 1 Height Three will equal a four shelf. So you are not limited to just using Height Four containers.
Step Two
Determine the depth and width of your shelf. Here are the depth and width measurements of the Modular Mate containers.
Oval: 7 1/4" in length and 3 3/4" in width
Super Oval: 11" in length and 3 3/4" in width
Square: 7 3/8" in length and 7 3/8" in width
Rectangle: 11" in length and 7 3/8" in width
Once you determine the length of your shelf you will know which containers you can use. For example, if your shelf is 10" deep you know you will not be able to use the Super Ovals or the Rectangles.
Do the same thing with the width and determine how many across you can store on your shelf.
Step Three
Which foods do you want to store in the Modular Mates and what size containers will they go in to? The list below will give you an idea of what items go in what size containers. If you have any questions you can send me an email and I would be happy to assist you. You can also visit my Tupperware website at http://my.tupperware.com/DonnaLoudon and use the Contact Me button to send me an email.
Creating Your Baking Center
If you are using Oval containers here are some items and weights you can use in them:
Oval One will hold:
10 oz baking powder
1 pound baking soda
12 oz baking chips
8 oz baking chocolate
Oval Two will hold:
2 pounds baking soda
1 pound brown sugar
1 lb. 8 oz baking chips
1 lb. baking chocolate
10 oz coconut 1 lb cornstarch
1 lb powdered sugar
Oval Three will hold:
2 lb cornmeal
1 lb unsweetened cocoa powder
Oval Four will hold:
4 lb baking soda
2 lb all purpose flour
1 lb 2 oz oats
Here are some items you can use in the Rectangle containers.
Rect 1
3 lb 12 oz baking mix:
Rect 2
4 lb baking soda:
Rect 1
2 lb all purpose flour:
Rect1 10 lb all purpose flour: Rect 4 5 lb sugar: Rect 2 10 lb sugar: Rect 3
Here are some items you can use in the Square containers.
2 lb 8 oz baking mix: Square 2 3 lb 12 oz baking mix: Square 3 4 lb baking soda: Square 2 2 lb brown sugar: Square 1 5 lb all purpose flour: Square 4 1 lb powdered sugar: Square 1
These are just a few samples of what you can do to create a baking center with Modular Mates. In upcoming weeks I will provide the specs for creating a Pasta and Bean Center; a Beverage Center; a Snack Center, and a Breakfast Center.
7 Mistakes of food storage
by Vicki Tate
If you are going to store food, make sure that the food you store is adequate for the need you and your family anticipate. This may not be as easy as to achieve as many people think, because the facts are that most people make serious errors when storing food—errors that will come back to haunt them when the food they’ve stored is the only thing that stands between them and their empty, dissatisfied, bellies.
There are seven common mistakes people make when storing food. They are:
1. Variety
Most people don’t have enough variety in their storage. 95% of the people I’ve worked with have only stored four basic items: wheat, milk, honey, and salt. Statistics show most of us won’t survive on such a diet for several reasons. a) Many people are allergic to wheat and may not be aware of it until they are eating it meal after meal. b) Wheat is too harsh for young children. They can tolerate it in small amounts but not as their main staple. c) We get tired of eating the same foods over and over and many times prefer to not eat, then to sample that particular food again. This is called appetite fatigue. Young children and older people are particularly susceptible to it. Store less wheat than is generally suggested and put the difference into a variety of other grains, particularly ones your family likes to eat. Also store a variety of beans, as this will add color, texture, and flavor. Variety is the key to a successful storage program. It is essential that you store flavorings such as tomato, bouillon, cheese, and onion.
Also, include a good supply of the spices you like to cook with. These flavorings and spices allow you to do many creative things with your grains and beans. Without them you are severely limited. One of the best suggestions I can give you is buy a good food storage cookbook, go through it, and see what your family would really eat. Notice the ingredients as you do it. This will help you more than anything else to know what items to store.
2. Extended staples
Never put all your eggs in one basket. Store dehydrated and/or freeze dried foods as well as home canned and “store bought” canned goods. Make sure you add cooking oil, shortening, baking powder, soda, yeast, and powdered eggs. You can’t cook even the most basic recipes without these items.
3. Vitamins
Vitamins are important, especially if you have children, since children do not store body reserves of nutrients as adults do. A good quality multi-vitamin and vitamin C are the most vital. Others might be added as your budget permits.
4. Quick and easy and “psychological foods”
Quick and easy foods help you through times when you are psychologically or physically unable to prepare your basic storage items. “No cook” foods such as freeze-dried are wonderful since they require little preparation, MREs (Meal Ready to Eat), such as many preparedness outlets carry, canned goods, etc. are also very good. “Psychological foods” are the goodies—Jello, pudding, candy, etc.—you should add to your storage. These may sound frivolous, but through the years I've talked with many people who have lived entirely on their storage for extended periods of time. Nearly all of them say these were the most helpful items in their storage to “normalize” their situations and make it more bearable. These are especially important if you have children.
5. Balance
Time and time again I’ve seen families buy all of their wheat, then buy all of another item and so on. Don’t do that. It’s important to keep well-balanced as you build your storage. Buy several items, rather than a large quantity of one item. If something happens and you have to live on your present storage, you’ll fare much better having a one month supply of a variety of items than a year’s supply of two or three items.
6. Containers
Always store your bulk foods in food storage containers. I have seen literally tons and tons of food thrown away because they were left in sacks, where they became highly susceptible to moisture, insects, and rodents. If you are using plastic buckets make sure they are lined with a food grade plastic liner available from companies that carry packaging supplies. Never use trash can liners as these are treated with pesticides. Don’t stack them too high. In an earthquake they may topple, the lids pop open, or they may crack. A better container is the #10 tin can which most preparedness companies use when they package their foods.
7. Use your storage
In all the years I’ve worked with preparedness one of the biggest problems I’ve seen is people storing food and not knowing what to do with it. It’s vital that you and your family become familiar with the things you are storing. You need to know how to prepare these foods. This is not something you want to have to learn under stress. Your family needs to be used to eating these foods. A stressful period is not a good time to totally change your diet. Get a good food storage cookbook and learn to use these foods! It’s better to find out the mistakes you’ll make now while there’s still time to make corrections.
It’s easy to take basic food storage and add the essentials that make it tasty, and it needs to be done. As I did the research for my cookbook, Cooking with Home Storage, I wanted to include recipes that gave help to families no matter what they had stored. As I put the material together it was fascinating to discover what the pioneers ate compared to the types of things we store. If you have stored only the basics, there’s very little you can do with it. By adding even just a few things, it greatly increases your options, and the prospect of your family surviving on it. As I studied how the pioneers lived and ate, my whole feeling for food storage changed. I realized our storage is what most of the world has always lived on. If it’s put together the right way we are returning to good basic food with a few goodies thrown in.
Vicki Tate is the author of the popular book, Cooking With Home Storage, available through Backwoods Home Magazine. Vicki also lectures on preparedness subjects. You can reach her by calling (435) 835-8283.)
Cutting Boards -- Is Glass, Plastic, or Wood the Best Choice for You and Your Kitchen?
by Anne Clarke
Trying to decide which sort of cutting board you should purchase for you kitchen? Here are some of the benefits and negatives associated with plastic cutting boards, wooden cutting boards, and tempered glass boards:
Plastic Cutting Boards
One of the benefits of plastic cutting boards is their nonporous surface. In other words, you do not have to worry about the juice from your meats and vegetables creeping into your cutting board and staying there. They are thought to be the most sanitary, especially since they are dishwasher safe. When you are done chopping away, you need only to set your board in your dishwasher, and you are set – it will come out clean and as good as new.
And while you may not consider any plastic cutting board to be “beautiful” – there are some stylish ones out there. You can find plastic cutting boards in a multitude of colors, so you can match it to your kitchen décor. Besides, plastic cutting boards are generally the least expensive – you can therefore get more for less money. It is a good idea to have multiple cutting boards in your kitchen. Come people even prefer using only certain boards for meat, and others for vegetables.
Another great thing about plastic cutting boards is that there are some thin, mat boards. These boards are flexible and are therefore great for transferring food. Also, because they are so thin and lightweight, they are great for taking on camping trips and picnics. Of course, sharp knives can and probably will eventually cut through a thin plastic cutting board.
Wooden Cutting Boards
Wooden cutting boards have been around for ages. Chefs have been putting their meats and vegetables up on wood chopping blocks and wooden countertops for many centuries, and there have not been too many contamination problems to speak of. Of course, in general, the major concern with wooden cutting boards is a question of sanitation. They are very porous – in other words, those meat and vegetable juices that were repelled by plastic cutting boards can, indeed, soak into a wooden one. Germs can get trapped in the cuts made by knives.
Properly cleaning your wood cutting board, though, will obviously help with the problem of sanitation. Most wooden cutting boards cannot, unfortunately be put through the dishwasher – check the care instructions before you place it through the dishwasher. If you have any doubts, it is best to handwash it if you want it to last a long time. Use hot water and soap to wash it. After you rinse it well, just set it out to dry. As mentioned before, most wooden cutting boards are rather porous, therefore, it might take a while for them to dry (they will soak up some of that water). Make sure that you allow yours to dry thoroughly before you put it away.
For an extra cleaning, use vinegar or a bleach and water solution. It is very possible and quite easy to keep your wooden cutting board bacteria and germ free. Be especially thorough when washing your board after cutting meat – you do not want to have e. coli or salmonella transferred to your board and remaining there. Of course, some people say that bacteria does not generally like wood and that wood has natural germ-killing substances. Nonetheless, it can never hurt to thoroughly clean your board. These properties of wood may be true for some woods, but perhaps not all. Bamboo, for instance, is known for its resistance to bacteria.
Many consider wood cutting boards to be more forgiving than others, and they work well with sharp knives – they will not dull your knives as quickly (this is why most knife storing blocks are made of wood).
Of course, another important aspect of wooden cutting boards is their charm. You can store your wood cutting board away in the cupboard, for sure, but you could also leave it out. You can display it, on the wall or on the countertop. A wood cutting board adds a sort of rustic charm that other cutting boards just cannot meet. There are some very beautiful hand-crafted wooden cutting boards out there.
Tempered Glass Cutting Boards
These boards can be very beautiful. You can find tempered glass boards that have wonderful designs and pictures. You can even find ones that match you décor perfectly. Of course, there are other benefits besides “looks” associated with glass cutting boards.
They are very resistant to heat (it can double as a ‘hot pad’). Also, they are very easy to clean – you can just stick them in the dishwasher. However, tempered glass cutting boards are not perfect. For one thing, the sound of a knife on one of these boards can make you cringe. More importantly, glass cutting boards can dull knives quicker.
All in all, just try out a few different types of cutting boards and see which ones work best with your cooking routine. As far as the sanitation of cutting boards go – any cutting board can be a breeding ground for bacteria and germs if not cleaned properly. Similarly, practically any cutting board can be very safe if you simply take the extra time to clean it. Choose your cutting board bases not solely on sanitation, but how easy it is to use, how easy it is to clean, and how well it matching both the décor of your kitchen and your cooking style.
Anne Clarke writes numerous articles for websites on gardening, parenting, fashion, cooking, and home decor. Her background includes teaching and gardening. For more of her articles on cooking supplies, please visit Vermont Cutting Boards.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anne_Clarke
Preparing Food Safely
By Tony Buel
Copyright 2006 Tony Buel
Most conscientious cooks use common sense when preparing or storing food. But common sense in food preparation doesn't just happen -it is learned. This learning happens and when we forget where we learned it, we call it common sense.
Here are just a few pointers to refresh and reinforce your common sense as you are preparing your current meal or storing it for future use.
- Food safety actually starts with your excursion to the supermarket. Pick up the packaged or canned foods. Do the cans have dents? Don't buy them. Is the jar cracked? Leave it. Does the lid seem loose or bulging? Pick up another. Look for any expiration dates on the labels -they are there for a reason. Never buy outdated food. Check the "use by" or "sell by" date on dairy products and pick the ones that will stay fresh the longest.
- After grocery shopping, put food into the refrigerator or freezer right away. Make sure to set the refrigerator temperature is set to 40 deg F and the freezer is set to 0 F. Refrigerate or freeze perishables, prepared foods, and leftovers within 2 hours. Raw meat, poultry, and seafood should be placed in containers to prevent their juices from dripping on other foods. Raw juices could possibly harbor harmful bacteria. Eggs always go in the refrigerator.
- Always cook food thoroughly until it is done. Red meat should turn brown inside. Chicken, when poked with a fork, should have clear juices. Fish, on the other hand, when poked with a fork, should flake. Cooked egg whites and yolks should be firm and not run. Be sure to use a food thermometer to check the internal temperatures of your poultry, meat, and other foods. Leave it in long enough to ensure an accurate reading.
- Wash your hands and cooking surfaces frequently. Bacteria can be spread quickly so this will ensure that it will not take hold and grow onto your food. A solution of one teaspoon of bleach in one quart of water is all that is needed to sanitize washed surfaces and utensils.
- Cooked foods should definitely not be left standing in the kitchen counter or table for more than two hours. Bacteria tends to grow in temperatures between 40 and 140 deg F.
- Foods that have been cooked ahead and cooled should be reheated to at least 165 deg F. (This just so happens to be one of the most overlooked areas in food prep).
- Chill Leftover Food Promptly. Place food in the refrigerator and don't overfill. The cold air needs to circulate freely to keep food safe. Divide the food and place in shallow containers. Think about labeling some of these containers so you don't lose track of how long they've been refrigerating.
These are just a few pointers that you already know, but need to keep remembering. If you follow these basics you will avoid most of the 'disasters in waiting'!
About The Author: Tony has been working diligently to provide free cooking related resources for the chef in all of us. His website is full of Easy Crockpot Recipes and is a labor of love which provides delicious and easy to make crockpot recipes as well as related tips and advice. Stop by any time! http://www.my-crockpot-recipes.com
Coffee Bean Storage: To freeze beans or not to freeze beans
by Cory Willins
There are many different suggested ways to store coffee in order to maintain freshness. One of the suggested methods is to put your ground coffee or coffee beans in the freezer. Is storing coffee in the freezer a good way to maintain freshness? Lets look at the pros and cons.
Freezing generally seems to be a good way to keep foods fresher longer. Many of our everyday foods are kept fresh by freezing. Meat, bread, vegetables, fruit and even butter can be frozen to extend shelf life. Many of the vitamins and minerals of the food are retained through freezing. Unfortunately, coffee might not fare as well as other foods when frozen.
Four items affect the quality and taste of stored coffee: light, air, heat and moisture. It does not seem like freezing has many of these qualities, but there are more factors at work which can affect the beans.
Coffee beans have been roasted in order to enhance flavor. The beans are also porous. Unfortunately a freezer can contain many other foods which have odors. The porous beans can absorb the flavors of many other frozen foods. Flavored coffees can be pleasant, but no one wants to drink seafood or garlic flavored coffee.
Moisture can also be absorbed by the coffee beans. Moisture can cause deterioration and loss of flavor. The more often you take coffee out of the freezer and put it back in, the more moisture absorption takes place into the bean. If you absolutely need to freeze some coffee because you have a large excess you would like to keep, only freeze it once. The more you take it in and out of the freezer, the more damage you do.
The oils present in roasted coffee beans are an important part to making a good cup of coffee. Freezing, however, can break down the flavorful oils in roasted coffee beans. When the oils break down, flavor is compromised giving another reason to stay away from putting your coffee in the freezer.
When it comes down to it, freezing is not the best way to store your coffee. Keep coffee stored in a cool, dry, airtight container away from light. Freezing coffee is possible, and is best if you only freeze it once. The resulting loss of flavor and quality from repetitive freezing makes it a method of storage to stay away from. Your best bet is to purchase only enough beans or ground coffee to supply you for 1-2 weeks. Enjoy the coffee at its freshest!
About The Author
Cory Willins writes for many websites including The Coffee Site. You can read more of her articles and information about coffee at
http://www.coffee-site.com/
