When in Doubt throw it out!

Food may look, smell and even taste fine, but nonetheless can still harbor bacteria that might cause food poisoning. Learn to store food safely to avoid bad bacteria, such as E. coli and salmonella.

The July issue of Mayo Clinic Women’s HealthSource provided an overview of food storage safety tips:

• Observe the “2-hour” rule. Foods requiring refrigeration, including poultry, meat, eggs, cooked seafood, produce, leftovers and takeout food, shouldn’t be at room temperature longer than 2 hours. When the air temperature is above 90 F, perishables should be refrigerated within 1 hour.
• Store leftovers safely. Hot foods can go straight into the refrigerator or freezer. They shouldn’t be left out to cool on the counter. Cool hot foods rapidly by dipping the bowl or container in ice or a cold-water bath. Leftovers from a large pot will cool more quickly when divided into smaller, shallower containers. In general, leftovers should be used or frozen within 3 to 5 days.
• Don’t crowd. A refrigerator that is too full will result in blocked air circulation, hampering the cooling process.
• Know when to toss. An opened package of luncheon meat can be safely stored in the refrigerator 3 to 5 days. Unopened, it will keep for 2 weeks. Three to 5 days is a safe storage time for deli or homemade egg, chicken, ham, tuna or pasta salads. Cooked or uncooked fish should be tossed after 1 to 2 days. The same goes for fresh sausage and uncooked ground beef.
• Set the temperature. A refrigerator temperature should be at or below 40 F. The freezer should be kept at 0 F.
• If in doubt, throw it out. Any foods that look or smell suspicious should be tossed.

CAMP UR, Iraq – Sustainers visited an Iraqi army dining facility to observe the IA food operations and service here, June 20.

The visit was part of a continued partnership between the Iraqi army and 287th Sustainment Brigade to improve the quality of food served to the IA and to ensure the quality continues after the drawdown of coalition forces.

The food service team from the brigade toured two IA dining facilities, one for enlisted soldiers and one for officers.

“We invited the IA to Adder to show them what we do regarding food service and how we protect our service members,” said Master Sgt. Paul Wilson, the senior food service non-commissioned officer in charge for the 287th Sust. Bde. “Now we are coming out to their dining location and checking on how they do things and to see if they are implementing some of the things they learned from us.”

The team found the IA dining facility manager implemented new processes from their visit to COB Adder, Wilson, a resident of Satanta, Kan., said. The IA now has a cook’s mount, which is a time for dining room managers to inspect the cooks before their shift begins for open wounds, cuts or illness that may cause cross contamination to the food, said Wilson.

“There are a lot of precautions we advised them to take like ensuring the cooks are clean and their uniforms are clean because they are handling food that everyone will be eating,” Wilson said. “If someone is sick they can send them to medical before they start cooking and make others sick.”

One of the major differences on how the facilities are run was seen during the tour of storage facilities, said Chief Warrant Officer Frank M. Merryman, a food service technician, 287th Sust. Bde. He said the U.S. Army keeps 7-days of food on-hand while the IA only has food for the next day in stock because of limited electricity and cold storage availability.

Another difference is the IA has separate dining facilities for enlisted soldiers and officers. The food is prepared differently and officers are served at their tables while enlisted are served buffet style.

“There are a lot of things that are different than how we do it, but that doesn’t mean they’re wrong, it’s just different,” Merryman, a resident of Rustburg, Va., said. “It was an honor to see how their process works.”

The visit allowed the 287th Sust. Bde. food service Soldiers to share ideas on how to improve sanitary conditions.

Wilson said because their facilities are older and do not have sneeze guards to protect the food on the service line. He suggested putting plastic wrap in the front of the food divider to provide a barrier between the Soldiers and the food.

“It’s a make-shift sneeze guard,” Wilson said.

They have most of the rooms set up for proper care of the food but in one room they have automotive supplies which could cause cross contamination of food, Wilson said. Wilson also made the suggestion to move the stuff to a different building, which frees another room for food storage and keeps the food safer.

“They (IA) have made great steps in taking better care of the food, cleanliness of their facilities and providing better precautions so that their Soldiers don’t get sick,” Wilson said. “I have enjoyed the experience of working with the Iraqi army and hope to visit again in the future.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced a regulation expected to prevent each year 79,000 cases of foodborne illness and 30 deaths caused by consumption of eggs contaminated with the bacterium Salmonella enteritidis.

The final rule requires preventive measures during the production of shell eggs in poultry houses and requires subsequent refrigeration during storage and transportation.

Egg-associated illness caused by Salmonella is a serious public health problem. Infected individuals may suffer mild to severe gastrointestinal illness, short term or chronic arthritis, or even death. Implementing the preventive measures would reduce the number of Salmonella enteritidis infections from eggs by nearly 60 percent.

“Preventing harm to consumers is our first priority,” said Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D., Commissioner of Food and Drugs. “Today’s action will prevent thousands of serious illnesses from Salmonella in eggs.”

Salmonella enteritidis can be found inside eggs that appear perfectly normal. If the eggs are eaten raw or undercooked, the bacterium can cause illness. Eggs in the shell become contaminated on the farm, primarily because of infection in the laying hens.

The rule requires that measures designed to prevent Salmonella enteritidis be adopted by virtually all egg producers with 3,000 or more laying hens whose shell eggs are not processed with a treatment, such as pasteurization, to ensure their safety.

Producers with at least 3,000 but fewer than 50,000 laying hens must comply within 36 months after the rule’s publication. Producers with 50,000 or more laying hens must be in compliance with the rule within 12 months after its publication in the Federal Register.

Under the rule, egg producers must:

• Buy chicks and young hens only from suppliers who monitor for Salmonella bacteria
• Establish rodent, pest control, and biosecurity measures to prevent spread of bacteria throughout the farm by people and equipment
• Conduct testing in the poultry house for Salmonella enteritidis. If the tests find the bacterium, a representative sample of the eggs must be tested over an 8 week time period (4 tests at 2 week intervals); If any of the four egg tests is positive, the producer must further process the eggs to destroy the bacteria, or divert the eggs to a non-food use
• Clean and disinfect poultry houses that have tested positive for Salmonella enteritidis
• Refrigerate eggs at 45 degrees Fahrenheit temperature during storage and transportation no later than 36 hours after the eggs are laid.

Egg producers whose eggs receive treatments such as pasteurization still must comply with the refrigeration requirements. Similarly, certain persons such as distributors, packers, or truckers holding or transporting shell eggs also must comply with the refrigeration requirements.

To ensure compliance, egg producers must maintain a written Salmonella enteritidis prevention plan and records documenting their compliance. Producers (except those who have less than 3000 hens or who sell all their eggs directly to consumers) also must register with the FDA. The FDA will develop guidance and enforcement plans to help egg producers comply with the rule.

The FDA estimated that the rule would provide $1.4 billion in annual public health benefits, at an annual cost of $81 million to the regulated industry, or less than 1 cent per dozen eggs produced in the United States.

During the 1990s, the FDA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture implemented a series of post-egg production safety efforts such as refrigeration requirements designed to inhibit the growth of bacteria that may be in an egg. While these steps limited the growth of bacteria, they did not prevent the initial contamination from occurring.

The new rule is part of a coordinated strategy between the FDA and the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). The FDA and the FSIS will continue to work closely together to ensure that egg safety measures are consistent, coordinated, and complementary.

In addition to the new safety measures being taken by industry, consumers can reduce their risk of foodborne illness by following safe egg handling practices. The FDA reminds consumers to buy eggs that have been refrigerated, make sure eggs in the carton are clean and not cracked, and cook eggs and foods containing eggs thoroughly.

For more information:
http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodSafety/Product-SpecificInformation/EggSafety/EggSafetyActionPlan/ucm170615.htm