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HealthKick: Safe Food To Go, By Jennifer Galea, MS, RD
Healthkick: Martial Arts Fitness Newsletter Articles © 2001 Professional Payment Systems
Whether you pack a lunch for your child at school or for yourself at work, occasions arise that have all of us eating away from home from time to time. These meals are prime targets for food borne pathogens that can make us sick. From the time we pack our food until the time we eat it, microorganisms (we can't see them) can grow in our food.
We can prevent this by handling food properly before we pack it, and then packing the meal appropriately. Handling foods properly means keeping them "clean" and at the right temperature. Always wash your hands, counters, utensils, and containers thoroughly before beginning food preparation. Raw fruits and vegetables should also be thoroughly washed prior to packing. Don't contaminate one food with another "dirty food" or a food ready to be eaten raw with a food that still needs to be cooked.
Keep foods at the right temperature. Hot foods should be kept hotter than 140 degrees F (60 degrees C). Cold foods should be kept colder than 40 degrees F (5 degrees C). Don't let foods sit out at temperatures in between for more than 2 hours total.
What you choose to pack is also important to its safety. Check "use by" dates on processed meats and other foods. If you choose pre-sliced meats, plan to use them within one or two days as they have a limited "life".
When you are packing your meal, use insulated bags, thermos containers, or coolers to keep your hot foods hot and your cold foods cold. Be sure your foods are either very hot or very cold before you pack them. If possible, freeze cold food before packing and it will defrost by the time you are ready to eat it. This works especially well with drink boxes, as they can double as ice packs to keep the rest of your meal cold.
Next, store you bag or cooler in an appropriate location. In warm weather, keep your container out of direct sunlight. During winter months, for example, your car trunk would be the coolest place to transport your lunch bag.
Some foods "travel" better than others. Some require less special handling or no refrigeration at all. If you have no way to keep your meal cold or hot, choose something that doesn't need to be kept warm or hot. Examples would be canned foods, such as canned meats, meat spreads, entrees, poultry products or fish. You can just open these foods, maybe heat them, and enjoy.
Other common lunch choices that don't require refrigeration: hard salami, pepperoni, and peanut butter. If you choose to buy a meal to eat at a later time, remember that the same rules apply; except that the earlier handling of these foods may have been less than ideal, making proper refrigeration or heating on your part crucial. Keep in mind that old adage: When in doubt, throw it out. If you're not sure if a food will be safe, don't risk it. Your health and well being are more important than the potentially wasted food and money!! Be educated and act wisely.