KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON - As the holidays approach and you are busy planning festive meals, be sure that food safety is a main ingredient in all meal planning. Large and complex menus, often with meat and poultry as a centerpiece, require particular attention to food safety basics. Proper handling, preparing, cooking and storage of food are essential to minimize the growth of E. coli, Salmonella, and other causes of foodborne illness.

“Food safety for the holidays goes beyond the proper preparation and cooking of turkey,” said Dr. David Fleming, Director and Health Officer for Public Health - Seattle & King County. "Whether you’re preparing turkey with all the trimmings or other traditional favorites, be sure to handle all food with care to minimize the risk of food borne illness.”

The majority of food borne illness stems from inadequate handwashing, cross contamination, improper cooking, heating and cooling.

Here are important food safety tips to ensure you and your guests are protected from foodborne illness this holiday season:

Wash your hands

• Wash your hands for about 20 seconds with warm water and soap to get rid of the germs on your hands that can get into food and make people sick.
• Wash your hands after going to the bathroom, after touching raw meat, fish or poultry, and after taking out the garbage, sneezing, or coughing.

Keep foods safe from cross contamination

• Avoid cross contamination, which occurs when germs from raw foods get onto foods that will not be cooked or fully reheated to 165º F before eating.
• Put raw poultry, meat and fish in the "meat" drawer of the refrigerator, or put them on the bottom shelf in the refrigerator so the juices don't drip on foods that won't be cooked.
• Do not reuse a container for raw meats until it has been washed, rinsed and sanitized.
• Use a hard cutting surface with no splits or holes in it.
• Wash, rinse and sanitize the cutting surface and utensils after cutting raw poultry, meat, and fish, as well as melons. Make a sanitizer with 1 teaspoon of household bleach for each gallon of cool water.

Heat foods to their proper temperature

• In order to kill all bacteria, cook turkey and other poultry to at least 165º F, ground beef and ground pork to 155º F, and fish, shellfish, lamb, other pork and other beef to 145º F.
• Cold foods should be kept cold (lower than 41º F), and hot foods should be kept hot (above 140º F).

Cool and reheat foods properly

• Cool food properly by placing it in uncovered shallow pans in the refrigerator.
• If you are taking prepared food to share with others, be certain that you keep it hot (above 140º F) or cold (41º F or below) during the trip and until it is served.
• Do not cover hot food until it has cooled in a refrigerator to 41º F or below.
• Reheating of food needs to be done as quickly as possible (within 2 hours) to a temperature of 165º F.
• If food has been sitting at room temperature for not more than 2 hours, refrigerate it or reheat it. If food has been sitting out for longer than 2 hours, throw it out.
• Take care with leftovers. Be sure the food has been cooled properly, then kept cold on the journey home.

Vegetables and fruit

• Wash and scrub fruits and vegetables under cold running water.
• Scrub the exterior of melons before cutting them, and then keep them cold at 41º F or below.
• Keep “starchy foods” like cooked beans (legumes), rice, potatoes and pasta at 140º F or above, or cold at 41º F or below. Be sure to refrigerate within 2 hours after the meal.
• Keep tofu and other plant protein foods hot (140º F or above) or cold (41º F or below).
• Sprouts must be kept at 41º F or below until used.

Donated foods

Meal programs and food banks see a large amount of food donated around the holidays, and this Thanksgiving is no exception. Public Health encourages your generous food donations, and stresses that the biggest need is for high quality canned protein foods, fruits and vegetables.  If you are donating fresh produce or a perishable food that has been kept continuously refrigerated at 41F or less, call the donor agency before delivering to make sure that they have refrigerator or freezer space.  Agencies may not accept home cooked or baked items such as turkey, potatoes, stuffing, pumpkin pies, etc. 

For additional information on food safety, please visit:

• Public Health’s Food Protection Program
• Cooking Turkey Fact Sheet
• Food safety in your home kitchen

Providing effective and innovative health and disease prevention services for over 1.8 million residents and visitors of King County, Public Health – Seattle & King County works for safer and healthier communities for everyone, every day.

# # #