Food safety during hard times

Publication date: Friday 29 June 2012

People taking risks with food in order to save money should be careful not to poison themselves, says Haringey's Food Safety Team.

In the Haringey area there were around 140 cases of food poisoning reported last year and the council was keen to use Food Safety Week earlier this month to promote awareness of food safety on a budget.

New research published last week by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) confirms that some people are taking more risks with food safety as they try to save money and make their food go further.

The research found that 97 percent of respondents believed the cost of their typical shopping basket had gone up significantly in the last three years, with half of these trying to make better use of leftover food.

However, it also became clear that some people are ignoring "use by" dates, while others are keeping leftovers for longer than the recommended limit of two days in the fridge.

Cllr Nilgun Canver, Cabinet Member for the Environment, said:

"Due to the current economic climate with low budgets and soaring supermarket prices the manner in which we store food has never been more important. However, it's clear that some people are not aware of the risks of reusing and storing food so our Food Safety Team has worked with the FSA to come up with a few tips to help people save money without risking their health."

Bob Martin, a food safety expert at the FSA, said:

"We are working with Haringey Council to encourage people to view their fridge as their friend and make the most of leftovers whilst staying safe."

The advice on leftovers says:

• Keep your leftovers covered and in the fridge or freezer
• Do not put hot food into the fridge or freezer; ensure it is cooled down as quickly as possible, ideally within 90 minutes
• Make sure your fridge is operating at the correct temperature, ideally below 5 degrees C
• Do not keep leftovers in the fridge for more than 2 days
• Frozen leftovers can be safely stored in the freezer almost indefinitely, but the quality will still deteriorate gradually with time, so it’s best to eat them within three months
• Make sure you defrost frozen leftovers thoroughly before using them. You can defrost foods quickly in the microwave, alternatively defrost them in the fridge overnight
• Eat leftovers within 24 hours of defrosting and do not refreeze them again. The only exception to this is if you are defrosting raw food, such as meat or poultry, which can be refrozen once it has been cooked
• Cook leftovers until steaming hot throughout

Food poisoning levels soar during summer months across the UK with around 120,000 extra cases of illness from June to August. One of the reasons for this increase is warmer temperatures causing any germs present to grow faster, which underlines the importance of getting leftovers in the fridge quickly.

• For more information on Food Safety Week visit the Commercial Environmental Health page
• Alternatively contact the Commercial Environmental Health team: email: enforcement@haringey.gov.uk

Photo above shows Cllr Nilgun Canver presenting Tottenham restaurant owner, Damian Okam, with his new 5 * Score Rating Certificate under a new food hygiene rating scheme.

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