Snowy Monaro Regional Council mayor, Peter Beer has come out in support of Australian Food Safety week and is urging the local community to take food poisoning seriously.
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"Food poisoning is more than a minor stomach upset, it can be life threatening especially for the elderly, pregnant women and their unborn babies and people with compromised immune systems," Mayor Beer said
"The objective for Australian Food Safety Week is to build upon the good consumer behaviour established during the COVID-19 pandemic so we can continue to reduce the amount of foodborne disease."
The community can continue the good work by following these five simple food safety tips:
CLEAN - wash hands with soap and running water before handling food and between handling raw foods and ready to eat foods, wash up regularly, especially items which have been used for raw meat and poultry, and keep the kitchen surfaces and fridge clean.
CHILL - keep the fridge at 5°C or below, refrigerate any leftovers as soon as they've stopped steaming and use within 2-3 days (or within one day for people at higher risk of foodborne illness including pregnant women, the elderly, and those with compromised immune systems) or freeze them immediately.
COOK - use a thermometer and cook poultry, sausages, minced or stuffed meat dishes to 75°C in the centre; be aware of the risk of raw or minimally cooked egg dishes or look for the new pasteurised eggs. Follow any cooking instructions on the food packaging. Remember, microwave ovens can cook unevenly. Make sure you follow the recommended stirring and standing times before serving.
SEPARATE - prevent cross contamination, especially between raw meat, seafood, fish or poultry and ready to eat foods like cooked meats, desserts and salads.
DON'T - cook for others if you have gastro or feel unwell - you could make them sick too - so ask someone else to cook or get a takeaway.
To help young people better understand about food safety for both their health and for helping their future employment opportunities, The Food Safety Information Council has partnered with educational company First for Training. The partnership will make online food safety basic training courses affordable and available as well as meeting their long-term aim of getting course material into schools. First for training will be making a charitable donation of 10 per cent of course sales to the Food Safety Information Council to help keep their important work going.
Schools can access the First for Training resources via www.highfieldelearning.com.au and by emailing info@highfieldelearning.com.au
Find out more about food safety and test your knowledge and take the food safety quiz on the Food Safety Information Council website www.foodsafety.asn.au.
