{"id":6796,"date":"2023-08-23T19:42:36","date_gmt":"2023-08-23T12:42:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=6796"},"modified":"2023-08-23T19:42:36","modified_gmt":"2023-08-23T12:42:36","slug":"5-food-safety-tips-an-expert-wants-you-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=6796","title":{"rendered":"5 Food Safety Tips an Expert Wants You To Know"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p> <span class=\"drop-cap__first text-dropcap \">C<\/span>urious if certain food habits\u2014like double dipping and leaving your Uber Eats order on the kitchen counter for hours post-delivery\u2014are super risky or totally safe? And if you don\u2019t wonder about these things, should you?<\/p>\n<p>According to food safety expert <a href=\"https:\/\/www.microbac.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.microbac.com\/\">Trevor Craig<\/a>, corporate director of technical training and consulting at Microbac Laboratories, some of these everyday scenarios are innocuous (phew!) while others are basically an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/picnic-food-safety\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/picnic-food-safety\/\">open invitation for contamination<\/a> (yikes). Ahead, discover a few common food safety mistakes you\u2019ll want to correct, stat.<\/p>\n<h2>5 food safety tips and guidelines an expert says to keep in mind<\/h2>\n<h3>1. The five-second rule: risky<\/h3>\n<p>Craig says that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/five-second-rule\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/five-second-rule\/\">five-second rule is simply not a thing<\/a>\u2014full stop. \u201cIt takes no time for massive contamination to happen,\u201d he warns. \u201cJust one bacterium is enough to contaminate something enough to get to a point that could cause illness, and that can happen with just any touch.\u201d You\u2019ll be better off tossing any items and crumbs that fall to the floor, no matter how tasty they may be, or how adamant you are about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/food-waste-tips\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/food-waste-tips\/\">reducing food waste<\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<hr\/>\n<p>Can\u2019t help yourself? \u201cThink of all the shoes and feet that have been over a surface and what they have stepped in before,\u201d Craig suggests. That vision is probably enough to spoil your appetite (all the while validating my own strictly enforced <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/wearing-shoes-in-the-house-argument\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/wearing-shoes-in-the-house-argument\/\">no-shoes policy<\/a> at home).<\/p>\n<h3>2. Eating and drinking items past their expiration dates: usually safe<\/h3>\n<p>Again, we champion limiting food waste as much as possible. Fortunately, if you opt for something in your pantry or fridge a bit past its expiration date, it\u2019s usually not a major cause for concern. \u201cShelf life on products has very little to do with food safety and more to do with food <em>quality<\/em>, and those aren\u2019t interchangeable terms,\u201d Craig explains.<\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content \" style=\"\" data-module-init=\"related-content\" data-module-immediate=\"\" v-cloak=\"\">\n<div class=\"related-content__wrapper \" v-cloak=\"\" :class=\"{'is-loaded':isLoaded}\">\n<p> <span class=\"inline pr-6 text-seafoam-dark\">Related Stories<\/span> <\/p>\n<p> <related-content class=\"related-content__links\" parent-article-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/food-safety-tips\/\" current-title=\"\u2018I\u2019m a Food Safety Expert, and These Are the 5 Most Common Mistakes I See When It Comes to Contamination Risk\u2019\" current-image=\"Stocksy_txpe35b391bgrl300_Small_3846208-425x285.jpg\" v-on:parsely-posts-loaded=\"onPostsLoaded\" start-date=\"2023-02-23\" tag=\"div\" inline-template=\"\" url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/food-safety-tips\/\" secret=\"w5ztterVB03LGZJLfXS0hf3EvQBuFFIWew9hmVQxthU\" apikey=\"wellandgood.com\" limit=\"3\"> <\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"related-content__card mb-[10px] sm:mb-[20px]\" :class=\"{'related-content__card--full':posts.length === 1}\" v-for=\"(post, key) in posts\"> <a v-on:click.prevent=\"trackLinkGA($event, key)\" :href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/food-safety-tips\/post.url\" data-url-source=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content__link\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content__card--image bg-tan\" :style=\"{ backgroundImage: 'url(' + post.image_url + ')' }\"> <img :src=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/food-safety-tips\/post.image_url\" :alt=\"post.title\"\/> <\/div>\n<p> <\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/related-content> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>But there are a few caveats to keep in mind. \u201cLots of people handle food poorly,\u201d such as by exposing it to unfavorable conditions and storing it improperly, \u201cand then expect the shelf life to be the same,\u201d he continues. These cases can venture into risky territory for food safety and quality alike. Moreover, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/expiration-dates-meaning\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/expiration-dates-meaning\/\">some foods and drinks<\/a> are best to consume closer to their expiration or best-by dates\u2014including dairy, meat, refrigerated raw veggies, bagged lettuce, and prepared foods.<\/p>\n<h3>3. Poor kitchen hygiene: risky<\/h3>\n<p>According to Craig, many of us could tweak how we handle our food to create a more hygienic kitchen environment. A few habits that get a thumbs down from the food safety expert include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Putting a utensil back in a jar after it\u2019s been in your mouth<\/li>\n<li>Leaving leftovers on the counter for a long time<\/li>\n<li>Not washing hands or utensils enough<\/li>\n<li>Not thoroughly disinfecting your sink and dishwasher<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Basically, if there\u2019s anything you\u2019d find gross or unacceptable in a restaurant\u2019s kitchen, the same standards should apply to your own.<\/p>\n<h3>4. Feeding your pets in the kitchen: potentially risky<\/h3>\n<p>As much as you may love your furry friends, Craig strongly advises feeding them in a separate area of your home, such as the bathroom or a small nook in the hallway. \u201cPet food does not follow the same rules as human food in most situations and runs a risk of contamination,\u201d he explains. \u201cWhen feeding your pets you may even store the scoop that you use in the food bucket or bag itself.\u201d To avoid icks and even potential illness, he encourages washing your hands thoroughly after handling pet food and not touching anything else until you do so.<\/p>\n<h3>5. Eating foods at parties and picnics: use discretion<\/h3>\n<p>While you don\u2019t need to avoid communal bites at all costs, Craig advises being more discerning about what you choose to put on your plate. \u201cThe food danger zone is rarely paid attention during big events like parties and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/picnic-food-safety\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/picnic-food-safety\/\">picnics<\/a>,\u201d he shares. \u201cI\u2019ll see food stored out in the sun or on the counter with no heating or cooling for hours and people constantly eating and grazing,\u201d which can potentially lead to foodborne illness.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThe food danger zone is rarely paid attention during big events like parties and picnics. I\u2019ll see food stored out in the sun or on the counter with no heating or cooling for hours and people constantly eating and grazing,\u201d which can potentially lead to foodborne illness.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>With that in mind, err on the side of caution when it\u2019s time to eat at your next social event (all within reason, of course). Reaching for a slice of freshly delivered pizza is fair game\u2014but it\u2019s worth thinking twice about biting into a burger that\u2019s been sitting out in the sun for a few hours, or scooping up that last bit of hummus without knowing whose hands or saliva have been added to the mix.<\/p>\n<h2>The takeaway<\/h2>\n<p>These examples only scratch the surface of the food safety mistakes the bulk of us likely make on a daily basis. It\u2019ll work to our benefit to pay closer attention to our food handling behaviors, but we also don\u2019t need to shift into panic mode. \u201cFood is commonly associated with bacteria, which makes so much of food taste good and important to production. Hopefully, that bacteria isn\u2019t the dangerous type, and most of the time it isn\u2019t,\u201d Craig reassures us. He advises against either extreme of thinking our food is totally sterile and bacteria-free, or that everything is laden with salmonella and will compromise your health. Most food safety risks typically land somewhere in the middle of the spectrum, he notes.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1675549\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Curious if certain food habits\u2014like double dipping and leaving your Uber Eats order on the kitchen counter for hours post-delivery\u2014are super risky or totally safe? And if you don\u2019t wonder about these things, should you? According to food safety expert Trevor Craig, corporate director of technical training and consulting at Microbac Laboratories, some of these &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6797,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6796","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6796","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6796"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6796\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6796"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6796"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6796"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}