Handle Food Safely This Holiday Season

As Nova Scotians get ready to celebrate the season and enjoy holiday feasts, they are urged to remember simple but important tips for safely storing, transporting and re-heating food for parties and potlucks.

"We encourage everyone to be aware of food-safety issues and use good food-handing practices when preparing meals for friends and family," said Agriculture Minister John MacDonell. "Keep hot foods hot, cold foods cold, and if in doubt, throw it out."

Department of Agriculture food safety staff provide consumer education and facility inspections throughout the year to help protect the health of Nova Scotians.

"Some principles of food handling are to keep work surfaces and utensils clean, separate foods to avoid cross-contamination, cook foods to the proper temperatures and chill food promptly to avoid bacteria growth," said Mike Horwich, the Agriculture Department's director of food safety. "Following these four basic rules will help prevent foodborne illness this holiday season."

The Department of Agriculture has several practical food safety fact sheets online, which include:

• how to prepare and serve buffets
• how to travel with food
• how to prepare and store holiday foods like egg nog and apple cider
• how to order and serve take-out foods like meat trays
• how to save and re-serve leftovers
• how to buy, thaw and cooking a turkey and store leftovers

The fact sheets are available at www.gov.ns.ca/agri/foodsafety .