How to Prepare Food Safely During a Pandemic

Men in fire suits in front of barbeque

At present, it does not appear that COVID-19 is spread through food. However, this is a good time to practice good food preparation hygiene. Here are some tips.

• Wash your hands properly before and after touching raw food, before and after cooking food, before serving or eating food, and after eating.
• Wash countertops, cutting boards and kitchen utensils with hot soapy water before use, and between various food items. This is especially important to isolate animal products such as meat, fish or poultry.
• Wash fresh fruits and vegetables thoroughly before cooking them or eating them raw. For complete information on how to wash various types of fruits and vegetables, consult this source: https://extension.wsu.edu/foodsafety/content/washing-fresh-produce/
• Clean off the tops of cans before you open them. It’s also important to clean the can opener blade after use. For more on why you should clean the tops of cans before opening them, read this: https://dfw.cbslocal.com/2013/02/04/yuck-whats-on-that-soda-can-cbs-11s-i-team-finds-out/

These hygiene practices are ones you should have been following all along. If you haven’t, perhaps now is the time to start making them part of your food preparation habits.

For more information on COVID-19 and food safety, please download this PDF: https://foodsafety.ces.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Food-Safety_COVID-19_Flyer_031720-1.pdf