3 Steps to Safe Outdoor Eating

Enjoy the great outdoors while preventing food-borne illness

Barbeques, picnics, and camp cookouts have always been a favourite activity when the weather is nice. And throughout the summer of 2020, more people are still venturing into the great outdoors to enjoy meals and participate in physically distanced social gatherings. While open air activities may offer a lower risk for contracting airborne illnesses, it’s important to protect yourself against foodborne illnesses too.

In the cold supply chain industry, it’s a well-known fact that the biggest threat to food quality and safety occurs when the food leaves the store in the hands of the customer. If not properly stored and looked after, food quality can degrade quickly. And in warm summer weather, the risk of food poisoning increases drastically.

Follow these three steps to prevent food borne illnesses and enjoy a safe and healthy summer.

1. Prepare your cooler
Cross contamination is a big concern when working in warm conditions, so before stepping out into that summer heat, always remember:

• Never fill a hot cooler. If you store yours somewhere warm like the garage, bring it inside the night before to let its base temperature cool down as much as possible.
  
  
• Before putting any food inside, be sure to sanitize your cooler with a mild-bleach solution or disinfectant.
  
  
• As you pack your cooler, keep raw meat, poultry, and seafood separate from other foods to avoid the spread of harmful bacteria. Make sure to use reusable containers or re-sealable plastic bags that are capable of preventing leaks.

2. Keep food cold
During the summer when the temperature can go from warm to hot in a short period of time, keeping your perishable food cold should be your number one priority.

• Use ice or ice packs to make sure the inside temperature of your cooler stays below 4°C. Placing cold food in a cooler without ice will not maintain a temperature cold enough to protect against foodborne illnesses.
  
  
• When preparing your food, get it from the cooler to the grill as quickly as possible. Harmful bacteria tend to grow in as little as two hours in the temperature danger zone of 4°C to 60°C.
  
  
• As you pack your cooler, keep raw meat, poultry, and seafood separate from other foods to avoid the spread of harmful bacteria. Make sure to use reusable containers or re-sealable plastic bags that are capable of preventing leaks.

3. Sanitize properly
It’s very important to follow the same washing instructions outside as you would inside your home. That means thoroughly washing your hands, work area and utensils.

• Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, before and after food preparation as well as before eating.
  
  
• Properly sanitize cooking equipment and work surfaces with a mild bleach solution.
  
  
• When it’s time to clean up, always use soap and clean, fresh water to thoroughly wash all the utensils, countertops and anything that was used during meal preparation and consumption.