It is finally time to fire up the barbecue! The season of cookouts, grilling events, festivals and markets has arrived, but it's also the season when we see a spike in food poisoning. This was recently discussed by food safety experts on Minnesota Public Radio (MPR). If you're a hosting a barbecue this season, let’s keep the bugs to ones you see dashing across your patio. Here's a few key safety tips:

• Separate: keep your raw foods away from everything else everywhere. That means separate in your shopping cart, in your car, on your counters, and in the coolers. Ice that has come into contact with raw foods should not be re-purposed for anything else. Have separate cutting boards for chicken, for beef, for veggies. There are many inexpensive ones available; use a permanent marker to write on them so they don’t get mixed up.
• Chill: keep your food below 41°F until it's ready to cook. This includes during transport, too. Remember – refrigeration only slows down the growth of bacteria and viruses, so even if the food only gets slightly warmer, the germs are happier and growth speeds up.
• Clean: keep your work and prep spaces clean and keep yourself clean too. If you wrestled the dog, played with the cat, worked in the garden, then you need to scrub thoroughly and maybe even change your clothes if you’re going to cook. You’d be surprised how much of what’s stuck on you ends up as unintentional “spice” in your food.
• Check your equipment: inspect your grill and brushes prior to cooking. There are many products available to help you safely clean your grill, as well as common household mixes of vinegar and baking soda. The internet and local hardware stores can provide a wealth of good information to keep you from ruining a great time with a bad intestinal bug. And most important: if you have any wire brushes do not use them on your grill! The bristles can break off and can cause very serious harm. Just ask one of the 1,700 Americans who ended up in the Emergency Room (ER) between 2002 and 2014 because they inadvertently swallowed a wire bristle with their barbecue. (ref.)
• Don't cross-contaminate: Wash your hands—thoroughly, at least 20 seconds worth and including your wrists is not a bad idea. Don't use marinades as salad dressings. And again, keep those cutting boards separate.
• Cook & hold: Cook your foods to the correct temperature, and use a thermometer to verify them. See chart below from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA):

Product	Minimum internal temperature & rest time
Beef, pork, veal & lamb Steaks, chops, roasts	145 °F (62.8 °C) and allow to rest for at least 3 minutes
Ground meats (beef burgers)	160 °F (71.1 °C)
Ham, fresh or smoked (uncooked)	145 °F (62.8 °C) and allow to rest for at least 3 minutes
Fully cooked ham (to reheat)	Reheat cooked hams to 140 °F (60 °C) and all others to 165 °F (73.9 °C).
Product	Minimum internal temperature
All poultry (breasts, whole bird, legs, thighs, wings, ground poultry, giblets, and stuffing)	165 °F (73.9 °C)
Eggs	160 °F (71.1 °C)
Fish & shellfish	145 °F (62.8 °C)
Leftovers	165 °F (73.9 °C)
Casseroles	165 °F (73.9 °C)

 

• Refrigerate: put the food in the fridge, the freezer, or the garbage when you're done with it; or after four hours, whichever comes first. Don't leave it out on the counter for a late-night snack because Bacillus cereus loves potato salad just as much as you do.

Also a very important reminder to check in with your volunteers, team or family members. Has anyone been sick recently? Is anyone having stomach issues? If so, they should not be handling or cooking food. It's also a good idea to exclude anyone that has a child or family at home that has been diagnosed with a contagious disease, like Norovirus. Even if the person feels fine, if they are caring for someone who does have those symptoms, they may be carrying those germs due to that close contact. Find another job for these folks!

Okay, you are now ready to enjoy your summer and have a safe grilling season!

This article has been adopted from the CDC's Grill Safety guidelines. https://www.cdc.gov/ncezid/dfwed/pdfs/bbq-iq-508c.pdf https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/pdfs/Grill-safety-infographic-508c.pdf