As a microbiologist, here are the foods
It is important to keep your hands clean while handling food. But how often can you find soap and hot water running in a park? Alcohol hand gels are better than nothing, but they do not kill all germs.
Keeping perishable food cold and covered is essential, as germs can double in numbers if food is allowed to warm up to 30°C for more than a few hours. For barbecues, meat needs to be thoroughly cooked, and a meat thermometer is a good investment to avoid food poisoning. Do not eat meat if its internal temperature is less than 70°C.
Buffets
Understanding the conditions in which bacteria like to grow, I pay close attention to the microbiological safety and cleanliness of buffets, both hot and cold.
Food can be contaminated indoors by insects, dust, and, most importantly, people. A buffet is a risky dining experience.
Contamination can occur when buffet guests touch food. Germs are also spread by people coughing or sneezing near the food. Indoors, insects such as wasps or flies can settle on the food. Germs can also be applied by the air, which is a rich source of bacteria, viruses, and fungi.
When I am at a buffet, I look at the time. There is a 2-hour catering rule that states perishable foods will be unsafe to consume if they are not covered and kept refrigerated within two hours. Buffets are often laid out in advance, making it difficult to know if they have been there for longer than two hours.
When it comes to hot buffets, such as the ones served in hotels for breakfast, I avoid serving lukewarm foods. This is because bacteria that can cause food poisoning grow rapidly when food is stored at temperatures below 60degC. Hot food should be served at a minimum of 60degC. When there is a doubt about the safety or quality of the food, I will reluctantly eat freshly toasted toast and marmalade in individual packages.
Oysters
Raw shellfish, such as oysters, is one food I will never consume. It is because oysters filter feed and can concentrate germs such as Vibrio or norovirus in their tissue.
A Vibrio-contaminated oyster is not different in appearance, taste, or smell. However, it can make you sick. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 80,000 people contract Vibrio from raw oysters. In addition, 100 people are killed by vibriosis every year in the US.
You can also get food poisoning by eating raw shellfish, such as clams, mussels, and cockles. Shellfish should only be eaten when well-cooked, as heat kills germs.
Bagged salads
Bagged salads are not something I eat, in part because my research is focused on fresh salad safety. Bagged lettuce may contain harmful germs like E. coli, Salmonella, or Listeria.
My research group found these pathogens grow 1,000 times better when they are given the juices of salad leaves, even if they are in a refrigerated bag. The same germs are able to multiply and become more infectious by using the juices from salad leaves.
Read more: The sniff test is not reliable for food safety – here’s why
For those salad lovers alarmed by this information, most bagged salads are safe if stored refrigerated, washed well before use (even ready-to-eat salad should be washed), and eaten as soon as possible after buying it.
If you find salad juices, toss them out. Noel V. Baebler/Shutterstock
Cooking techniques
I have a few guidelines for cooking.
When it comes to perishable food, I check the use-by date. If it’s before that date, and the package is swollen, or the food opens up looking or smelling different, then I toss it out as it may be contaminated.
It is instinctive for me to wash my hands after and before handling food.
Reheating cooked rice is one of the things I never do. Uncooked rice may contain spores that are a food poisoning germ, Bacillus Cereus.
The spores will survive even though the Bacillus is killed during cooking. When the rice is allowed to cool at room temperature, the bacteria will grow.
The Bacillus that is grown on rice can produce toxins that can cause nausea and vomiting lasting up to 24 hours.
Dine out
Food safety is important to me. I am always first in line at buffets. I also watch the clock to see how often perishable food is replaced. I don’t collect “doggy” bags of leftover food (they usually exceed the two-hour limit), even if it is for my pet.
