An Apple a Day

Tips to Prevent Foodborne Illness this Holiday Season

The holidays invoke visions of turkey, ham, baked goods and eggnog. But don’t let foodborne illness infect your holiday celebration! Careful attention to safe food preparation and storage is the key to avoiding foodborne illness. Following a few common sense guidelines will keep you and your guests healthy this holiday season. Use the following tips to ensure that your holiday foods are not only tasty but safe.

Food safety common sense

Clean: Wash your hands and food contact surfaces frequently. Bacteria can spread from food to cutting boards, knives, sponges and counter tops.

Separate: Avoid cross-contamination, the process of spreading bacteria from one food to another. Keep raw meat, poultry and seafood away from ready-to-eat foods.

Cook: Eating raw or partially cooked meat, fish, poultry, oysters or eggs may expose you to bacteria that can make you ill. Cooking food to the appropriate internal temperature kills harmful bacteria that may be present.

Chill: Perishables should not remain at room temperature for more than two hours. Cold temperatures keep most harmful bacteria from growing and multiplying. Refrigerators should be set at 40°F and freezers at 0°F. Double check the accuracy of your appliances with a thermometer.

Potentially Hazardous Food Items

Baked goods: Avoid eating raw cookie dough or batters made with raw, fresh eggs. Raw eggs may harbor salmonella bacteria. Cooking kills the illness-causing bacteria.

Eggnog: Traditional eggnog is prepared with raw eggs, which may harbor salmonella. While cooking can destroy the offending bacteria, holiday revelers can still become ill if the eggnog is left at room temperature for several hours before being consumed. A safer alternative is to serve ready-to-drink pasteurized eggnog or prepare your own eggnog with pasteurized egg product. Be sure to store eggnog in the refrigerator. And don’t fool yourself into thinking you’re safe from salmonella by adding a dash of rum to your eggnog!

Turkey/stuffing: Properly thawing turkey before cooking is important and necessary to reduce the risk of foodborne illness. An improperly thawed turkey will cook on the outside while remaining raw on the inside. Thus the interior of the bird will not reach high enough temperatures to destroy illness-causing bacteria. Never thaw items at room temperature. Thaw your frozen turkey in the refrigerator (set at 40°F) and allow 1 day of thawing for every 4 pounds of turkey. Monitor your turkey for doneness by inserting a food thermometer into the inner thigh area of the turkey without touching bone. The turkey is done when the temperature reaches 180°F. Remember that stuffing can help
harmful bacteria survive and grow if the stuffing temperature does not reach 165°F. It is safer to cook stuffing separately.

Seafood: Start by purchasing fresh seafood that is refrigerated or properly iced. Thoroughly cooking oysters and seafood kills bacteria and viruses that may cause illness and is the safest way to consume these products. While many people enjoy raw oysters, those with liver