USDA Launches New Food Safety Campaign
In a move designed to reduce foodborne illnesses and the spread of deadly bacteria this summer, the USDA has created a new program titled “Food Safe Families." The program offers tips on how to handle, clean and prepare food - especially important, considering the toll that food-borne illnesses take on Americans each year.
Just how serious an issue is it? An estimated 48 million Americans suffer from a foodborne illness each year, with 180,000 requiring hospitalization and 3,000 ultimately dying.
The key to avoiding these illnesses is handling and preparing foods in the safest manner possible. That goes not only for products like eggs and chicken, which are widely known to be potential sources of germs and illness, but also less commonly suspected items, including fruits and vegetables.
For practical, easy-to-implement safety tips, along with plenty of additional information about proper food handling procedures, check out the USDA's Food Safety site here:
http://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/basics/index.html