By making sure you follow the four simple tips listed, you will be helping to reduce food-borne illness for you and your family.

• While preparing foods, whether it is raw meat or cooked meat, be careful of cross-contamination. Wash hands in warm, soapy water before preparing foods and after handling raw meats, including poultry and seafood.

• Keep raw meats and ready-to-eat foods separate When the juices from raw meats or germs from unclean objects accidentally touch cooked or ready-to-eat foods, cross-contamination occurs. Make sure to use two separate cutting boards; one for raw meat, the other for ready-to-eat foods like breads and vegetables – and wash cutting boards thoroughly after use in hot soapy water.

• Cook to proper temperatures When grilling, preheat your grill for 20 to 30 minutes. Foods are properly cooked when they are heated for a long enough time and at a high enough temperature to kill harmful bacteria. Use a meat thermometer to help ensure the meat is cooked thoroughly.

Hamburgers should be cooked to71°C (160°F) or until the juices run clear.
Cook poultry to 82°C (180°F).
Beef, veal and lamb steaks, roasts, and chops can be cooked to77°C (170°F).
All cuts of pork should reach77°C 170(F).
Fish should be opaque and flake easily.

• Refrigerate promptly (below 4 degrees Celsius) Cold refrigerated perishable foods like luncheon meats, chicken, and potato or pasta salads should be kept in an insulated cooler packed with several inches of ice or ice packs. Rinse and pre-chill whole melons thoroughly before cutting into them. Keep cut pieces of melon at 4°C (40°F) or colder. This will also help reduce the growth of bacteria in the food. Foods left out for more than 2 hours may not be safe to eat. And don’t forget to avoid sunburn with hats, sunglasses and plenty of sunscreen.