For Safety's Sake • Food Safety Newsletter • March 2007

Information and Tips for Keeping it Fresh!

Volume 1 • Issue 1

Welcome to For Safety's Sake - an informational newsletter dedicated to food safety. We hope you enjoy this issue and share it with others who are concerned about food safety. Sign up to receive this newsletter by email >

Focus on Food Safety

Focus on Food Safety MESSAGE FROM GREG WEST, President of National Pasteurized Eggs, Inc.

Dear Colleagues,

Every day we take risks,Focus whether it's crossing the street, driving our cars, or participating in sports. No activity is 100 percent safe and without risk. However, most of us do everything in our power to stay safe and keep our families protected, too. That means looking both ways when crossing the street, buckling up in our cars, making sure our children are in proper car restraints and outfitting our kids with protective gear, whatever their sport may be.

When it comes to food safety, lately, there seems to be something to worry about in the news on a daily basis. From spinach to chicken, and now to a childhood favorite, peanut butter, we must always be vigilant.

While fighting the many invisiable bacteria may seem impossible, there are numerous simple things we can do to help protect our families and our customers. For instance, use pasteurized shell eggs and egg products in your establishment to avoid the introduction of salmonella and cross contamination in your kitchen. Insist on disposable towels instead of sponges or dish clothes to prevent the spread of bacteria in your kitchen. Always use a food thermometer and make certain hot and cold foods are served at their proper temperature. Perhaps the most simple and cost effective of all, regular hand washing by all staff can make a huge impact on maintaining a safer kitchen

Through this regular communication, we will share a variety of issues relating to food safety in the food service industry and provide you with helpful tips and news you can use at your facility. We invite your comments or suggestions for future e-newsletters. If you'd like to reach us directly to provide any feedback drop us an e-mail at 4safetyssake@gmail.com.

Food Safety in the News

Food Safety in the News In this regular section, we will highlight selected recent happenings in food safety appearing in the media and reference the complete article.

Legislation for New Food Safety Agency Introduced

Those interested in food safety are sure to take great interest in new legislation that has been recently introduced by Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) to hub all food safety responsibilities under a new Food Safety Administrator.

Indeed, food safety is of paramount importance to the U.S. and its economy. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently designated food safety as one of the high risk federal government programs. In fact, agriculture, including all food production, is about 13 percent of the gross domestic product, and the largest industry in the country, according to the GAO.

The Safe Food Act would create a Food Safety Administration, much like the Environmental Protection Agency taking over responsibility of food safety and labeling from the USDA and the FDA. It is also hoped that the bill would establish a comprehensive program protecting the public's health and increase consumer confidence in the U.S. food supply. As it works now, 12 governmental agencies are responsible for food safety monitoring, inspection, and labeling functions.

The Act would also consolidate various federal agencies responsible for the country's food supply including USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, The FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition and the Commerce Department's National Marine Fisheries Service.

In addition, the bill also will incorporate a traceback provision, giving the new agency recall authority and requiring more frequent inspections to help prevent future E. coli outbreaks.

Source: (ConsumerAffairs.com: posted Feb. 15, 2007) http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2007/02/congress_food_safety.html

CBS News Polls Americans Regarding Food-Borne Illness Concerns

According to a recent CBS News Poll, (conducted Feb. 8-11, 2007) two-thirds of Americans express some confidence in the government's ability to protect consumers from food related illness - though only 15 % have a great deal of confidence. One in four American are very concerned about food-borne illnesses, and four in ten have personal experience - 41 percent say they have had food poisoning or other food-borne illness at some point in their lives.

Also, according to that same poll, Americans of all ages, and in all regions of the U.S., expressed about the same amount of confidence in the government's ability to protect them from food-borne illness. The percentage of those having little or no confidence in the government to protect them is almost one in three. It probably comes as no surprise that that number is greater among those who have gotten sick from food.

Confidence in Gov't Ability to Protect Consumers From Food-Borne Illness

Great deal - 15%
Some - 32%
Not much/none - 31%

For the complete poll results, visit www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/pdf/021307_food.pdf. (Source: CBS)

Latest Salmonella Culprit - Peanut Butter

It appears that 370 cases of salmonella infection in 42 states have been attributed to the consumption of Peter Pan and Great Value brand peanut butter, it was announced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Feb. 27, 2007. The peanut butter in question was manufactured by ConAgra.

(Source: CDC) http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/salmonellosis_2007/outbreak_notice.htm

Food Safety Q & A

Food Safety Q & A We receive many questions from customers and readers regarding a variety of food safety issues. In this section on a regular basis, we will address some of these questions. If there is an issue you would like us to address in a future e-mail communication, please contact us at 4safetyssake@gmail.com.

Q: Are some foods more likely to cause food borne illness than others?

A: Just about any food can become contaminated if handled improperly. However, foods rich in protein, such as meat, poultry, fish and seafood, are frequently involved in food-borne illness outbreaks for three reasons:

  1. Protein-rich foods tend to be of animal origin. Therefore, micro-organisms of animal origin are frequently found in animal foods.
  2. Animal foods are rich in protein that bacteria break down into amino acids, which are an important nutrient source to some bacteria.
  3. Bacteria also need moisture in order to survive and reproduce. Thus, they thrive in foods with high moisture content. These include starchy, egg-rich foods and cream-based foods, such as potato or pasta salads, cream-based soup and custard or cream pies.

(Source: FDA) http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/foodborneinfections_g.htm#morelikely

Safe Serving Spotlight

Kihei Caffe Who is leading the pack in food safety? In this section, we will highlight foodservice entities that hold the highest standards and can teach all of us a thing or two. If you believe your organization deserves to be recognized, please e-mail us (4safetyssake@gmail.com) and let us know. We'd love to share your story, too.

Leading Maui Restaurant to Serve Pasteurized Shell Eggs

Kihei Caffe in South Maui will now exclusively use pasteurized shell eggs for all dishes calling for eggs. By using pasteurized shell eggs, Kihei Caffe, which serves more than 100,000 diners annually, joins a growing number of restaurants and food service entities across the country that are converting to pasteurized shell eggs to eliminate the risk of Salmonella enteritis (SE), the main egg-related salmonella bacteria.

Use of pasteurized shell eggs has skyrocketed nationally, due to consumer concerns about food safety in wake of food-borne illness outbreaks throughout 2006. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) estimates 2.3 million eggs contaminated with SE were sold last year, exposing a large number of people to risk of illness.

"We want to provide guests with a safe option to have all of their favorite egg entrees," said Barry Allison, Kihei Caffe owner. "By using pasteurized shell eggs, I can confidently meet all of my diners' egg needs."

To learn more about Kihei Caffe visit www.Kiheicaffe.com

From the Food Safety Expert

From the Food Safety Expert In this section, we will provide tips and information from experts in the field. Are you an expert in food safety? If you are, we'd like for you to be part of our expert team. E-mail 4safetyssake@gmail.com and let us know about you.

Hazards In Our Kitchens (CYA - It's Time to Cover Our Assets)

Below are 15 issues that can jeopardize food safety in our kitchens. Make sure those listed doesn't pertain to you, your staff or your kitchen facilities to help increase the odds of safe eating for all.

  1. A management team that doesn't make food safety or training a priority.
  2. A chef that doesn't take time to talk with diners on a regular basis and personally investigate any guest complaints.
  3. Serving undercooked foods without communicating this to the guests.
  4. Not paying attention to or following through on pest management recommendations.
  5. Allowing staff to use equipment or chemicals without prior training.
  6. Cooks who are unaware of final safe cooking temperatures. These temperatures should be posted in all kitchens for easy and regular reference.
  7. A staff that fails to follow proper hand washing and personal hygiene protocols.
  8. Foreign objects or chemicals containing food.
  9. Lack of crisis management program.
  10. Failure to correct previous Health Department violations as quickly as possible.
  11. Failure to maintain safe food temperatures.
  12. Failure to remove sick employees from your operation.
  13. Purchasing food from unsafe sources.
  14. Handling Potential Hazardous Foods (PHFs) while handling other foods and utensils.
  15. Failure to inform and offer safe options to highly susceptible populations.

About Jeff Nelken, B.S., M.A., R.D.
Jeff Nelken is a forensic food safety/HACCP expert who has worked with CNN, CBS, NBC, INSIDE EDITION, and Dateline MSNBC's investigative team, as well as restaurants, casinos and food manufacturers. He coaches personnel to improve food safety awareness, through self-inspection and customized quality HACCP training programs. He is a certified trainer and provider with the Los Angeles Health Department. Visit www.foodsafetycoach.com for more information.

Did You Know?

How many cases of Salmonella are reported each year?

Every year, approximately 40,000 cases of salmonellosis are reported in the United States. Because many milder cases are not diagnosed or reported, the actual number of infections may be thirty or more times greater. Salmonellosis is more common in the summer than winter. Children are the most likely to get salmonellosis. Young children, the elderly, and the immunocompromised are the most likely to have severe infections. It is estimated that approximately 600 persons die each year with acute salmonellosis.

(Source: CDC) http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/salmonellosis_g.htm

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