Tomorrow, Utah is holding its first statewide earthquake drill to help citizens prepare for potential disasters.  As we at StateFoodSafety.com get ready to participate in the “Great Utah Shakeout,” I started thinking about appropriate ways to keep food safe during emergencies.

The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service has offered a helpful fact sheet about food safety emergency preparedness methods. First, it is important to remember that meat, poultry, fish, and eggs should be kept at or below 41 degrees F, which may be difficult in an emergency if the power is out. Without power, an unopened refrigerator can only safely hold cold foods for about four hours. Placing dry or block ice in the fridge may help maintain a cold temperature, but if the power is going to be out for a prolonged period of time, you might be better off stocking up on shelf-stable foods that do not require refrigeration or extensive preparation. Make sure to also keep ready-to-use baby formula and dry pet food in your food storage supply.

If you live in an area that is prone to flooding, you will want to keep your food storage on shelves that will keep the food safe from contaminated flood waters. The FSIS warns that you should never consume food that may have come into contact with flood water. Similarly, you should discard food that has been near a fire because of the potential damage caused by heat, smoke fumes, or chemicals used to fight the fire. Keep a supply of bottled water on hand, a gas-powered stove for cooking food or boiling water, a food thermometer to help you determine if foods are safe to eat, an appliance thermometer to help you check the temperature of the refrigerator or freezer, and soap and chlorine bleach for cleaning dishes, utensils, and other cookware.

Being adequately prepared for emergencies when it comes to food safety will help you “minimize the potential loss of food and reduce the risk of foodborne illness.”

–Madelyn Tucker

1. Wash your hands properly with soap and water before and after food preparation. Make sure family members also wash hands before and after eating.
2. Buy all meats, seafood, and dairy products from reputable suppliers
3. Examine canned foods for bacterial contamination
4. Store raw meats and other potentially hazardous foods below ready-to-eat foods in refrigerator. For example, if you have a thawing turkey, place it below cans of Coca-Cola.
5. Keep potentially hazardous foods out of the “Temperature Danger Zone” (41 to 135 degrees F)
6. Wash fruits and vegetables before eating them
7. Do not prepare food when you are sick
8. Avoid cross contamination by cleaning knives and cutting boards especially when switching from one food item to another. It’s also a good idea to keep your kitchen cleaned, sanitized, and free of pests.
9. Cook foods to their appropriate temperature
10. Use your best judgment when preparing, eating, and serving food!

–Madelyn Tucker

A concerned member of the StateFoodSafety.com team recently asked a pertinent food safety question that has crossed my mind as well. Just how long can bacteria such as E. coli, Shigella, and Salmonella survive on inanimate surfaces?

According to a 2006 study, these particular species can persist for months on dry surfaces. In addition, these pathogens thrive longer in humid environments and low temperatures. Researchers reached conflicting conclusions about the effects of surface types on the life span of the bacteria. Some insisted that the species persisted longer on plastic, while others found “a survival advantage on steel.” Nevertheless, the study, which was primarily focusing on the transmission of bacteria and viruses in hospitals, has significant implications for the food service industry as well.

For example, the study’s conclusion emphasizes the importance of cleaning and sanitizing hard surfaces to minimize the presence of harmful bacteria. All food workers should be aware of this vital step when cleaning food preparation and dining areas. In addition, proper hand washing is crucial in preventing infection from or transmission of these long-living pathogens. Food preparation workers, like medical personnel, should also wear disposable gloves as a precautionary measure. Because of the potentially long survival rate of harmful bacteria on surfaces, never assume that if you leave a surface long enough, it will cease to be a threat.

Furthermore, because harmful bacteria can persist on surfaces for extended periods of time, you should also probably reconsider your faithful adherence to the “Five-Second Rule”—the one that makes eating food within five seconds of dropping it on the floor perfectly acceptable.  A Clemson study from 2003 confirms that salmonella could survive on a surface for months. After contaminating a surface with Salmonella eight hours previously, researchers dropped slices of bread and bologna, left them sitting for a mere five seconds, and found that the food slices had 150 to 8,000 bacteria on them. Even as few as 10 Salmonellas can cause illness. Thus, the moral of the story is that surfaces can potentially contain harmful microbes that can persist for months and even brief contact with such surfaces can result in negative consequences. Clean surfaces often and don’t eat food off the floor. It sounds silly, but we’re all guilty of ignoring these simple guidelines.

–Madelyn Tucker

Sometimes the classic “sniff for freshness” test isn’t always the best way to make sure a food item is safe to eat, and most of us probably don’t know the proper ways to store foods in the freezer, refrigerator, or pantry. For example, did you know that seafood should be placed on a bowl of ice inside the fridge, or that corn starch is good indefinitely as long as it’s kept in a dry place? Real Simple Magazine recently published “The Ultimate Food-Storage Guide” which provides tips for storing everything from ground meat to beer. By using information gathered from the US Department of Agriculture, food scientists and manufacturers, and other experts like fishmongers and bakers, the magazine’s guide can help you store and enjoy food in its “peak condition,” reducing your chances of consuming spoiled or freezer-burned goods. Click here to read the guide!

A few weeks ago, I wrote an article about the importance of the new Twitter accounts created by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service in informing consumers about food recalls and other food safety information. With all of the recent food safety scares such as the “pink slime” controversy, it seems that more consumers are hungry for similar accessible ways to find out where their food comes from in addition to recall information.

Derek Singleton, a Food Distribution Analyst at Software Advice, recently wrote a blog post concerning a mobile app that could potentially satisfy this consumer need. The app CLEARthru, released by Junction Solutions, allows smartphone users to scan a QR code to access food product information that was previously inaccessible or difficult for consumers to find. This information includes product origins, product freshness, packaging information, nutrition and allergen facts, and food recall information. Essentially, this app allows individuals to trace the path of their food, from farm or processing plant to the dinner table. Of course, for this app to be truly effective food suppliers must include this QR label on every food item and consumers must be willing to take a few extra minutes at the grocery store to scan and read this product information.

According to Singleton, “we’ll need an ecosystem of growers, processors, distributors and retailers to embrace this consumer movement.” Nevertheless, these types of innovative solutions are becoming more important as we advance in an age of technology and as more consumers are bombarded by conflicting information about food safety issues and desire to know the facts about their food before buying, consuming, and serving it to others.

For more information on this mobile app, check out Singleton’ s blog post here.

-Madelyn Tucker