News: Usda Hosts Food Safety Camp For Kids: Offers Food Safety Tips For Summer

Released on: 05-23-2007

USDA's Food Safety and Inspection service today hosted a food safety camp that provided children with hands-on instruction about the dangers of foodborne illness and how to prevent it. Activities ranged from hand washing demonstrations with glow-in-the-dark materials to allowing children to study bacteria that can contaminate foods through a high-powered microscope.

With Memorial Day weekend quickly approaching and grilling season on the horizon, the camp provided many lessons to keep food safe during summer activities like picnics and barbecues. Food safety campers also learned how to safely pack and store "bag lunches" for school and other summer activities.

"It is no surprise that foodborne illness cases can spike during the summer months," observed USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety Dr. Richard Raymond. "When temperatures are warm, bacteria thrive and can multiply quickly, which can unfortunately lead to severe illness."

Dr. Raymond also noted that foodborne illness is a significant public health concern in the U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control, millions of Americans are affected each year by foodborne bacteria. Symptoms can range from mild to very serious.

"Summertime favorites like grilled hamburgers and barbecued chicken must be cooked to a safe minimum internal temperature to destroy bacteria," Raymond said. "The only way to know if your food is cooked properly and is safe to eat is by using a food thermometer."

An important lesson of the day was to keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. Food safety campers learned that popular summer side dishes like potato salad, fruit salad and even celery and carrot sticks must be kept at 40 °F or below in order to prevent the growth of bacteria. Foods that have been left out in warm summer temperatures for longer than an hour should never be eaten.

Students also learned the key messages associated with USDA's Be Food Safe Campaign - Clean, Separate, Cook and Chill. These four messages teach the safe way to prepare and handle foods in order to avoid the spread of bacteria and prevent foodborne illness in every season.

Be Food Safe this Summer: Four Easy Lessons

• Clean - Wash hands and surfaces often.
• Separate - Don't cross-contaminate. Keep raw meat and poultry apart from cooked foods.
• Cook - Use a food thermometer to be sure meat and poultry are safely cooked.
• Chill - Refrigerate or freeze promptly.

Students at the camp had a chance to pose questions to the USDA's online food safety expert, Ask Karen. Karen is the USDA's virtual representative that is available to answer food safety questions 24 hours day, seven days a week. Visit Karen any time at AskKaren.gov.

Consumers can also contact the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline with food safety questions. Food safety experts are available year-round from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern Time to answer questions (English and Spanish). The toll-free number is 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854). Recorded messages are available 24 hours a day. E-mail inquiries may be directed to MPHotline.fsis@usda.gov.