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Home Food Safety
Health Canada estimates that there are two million cases of foodborne illness, a type of food poisoning, in Canada each year. For those at risk - infants and young children, pregnant women, older adults and people with weakened immune systems - food poisoning can result in very serious health problems.
Here are easy safe food-handling steps you can take at home to protect yourself and your family.
Clean
Wash your hands when handling food. This is especially important after using the washroom, handling pets, or diapering children. You should also be careful to wash your hands after handling raw meats or eggs. Utensils as well as dishes used in preparing the raw meat should not be reused until you have washed and sanitized them with soap and hot water.
Remember that unwashed utensils, cutting boards, and hands can transfer bacteria from raw to cooked foods. A mixture of household bleach and water (approximately one capful of bleach to one cup of water) is a handy sanitizing solution.
Wash all vegetables and fruits, including those that you peel or cut, like melons, oranges and cucumbers.
Cook
Cook foods thoroughly. Meats, eggs, gravies, fish, etc., should be heated to at least 74ºC (165ºF) to kill harmful bacteria. Check meat with a probe thermometer to ensure that an internal temperature of at least 74ºC has been reached.
Raw or partially-cooked poultry, pork, ground meat products, seafood and eggs should not be eaten: they may contain food poisoning bacteria.
Chill
Refrigerate food properly. Refrigeration will help reduce the growth of bacteria and the production of toxins. Meats, eggs, and dairy products should be kept at 4ºC (40ºF) maximum. Thaw food in the refrigerator. This will help stop the growth of bacteria and the production of toxins.
Separate
Separate raw foods from cooked foods. Double-bag raw meat when storing it in the bottom of your refrigerator or when bringing it home from the grocery store. Drippings from meat can contaminate other foods with food poisoning bacteria.
Make sure your water is safe
Untreated water can carry a number of disease-causing bacteria. The City provides safe water. If you get your drinking water from a private well and you think that your drinking water may be contaminated, you can bring it to a rolling boil for at least one minute. Or, if you are without power, you can use bleach. Add no more than two drops of household liquid bleach per litre of water, then let the water stand for 15 minutes before drinking.
Drink only pasteurized milk and juices
Unpasteurized milk and juices can carry a number of disease-causing bacteria.
What to do if you have a power blackout
Avoid opening the refrigerator door to keep its contents cold. Food in most freezers should remain frozen for 24-48 hours without power. If perishable food thaws in the freezer, it can be used safely as long as it stays cold. It is best to cook it within a day. Don't eat thawed, warm meat. In the winter, you can store all perishable food outside in protective containers in the snow.
If you have any questions, please call Ottawa Public Health at 613-580-6744 ext. 23748.
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