The Blank Canvas of a New Year: Don’t Leave your Food Safety Program out of your New Year’s Resolutions
Each year, we get the opportunity to begin a new year and turn to a new page, sort of speak. As we start the journey of a new year, we are reminded of New Year’s resolutions everywhere we look – from television commercials to your social media streams. But it is also important to take stock of where we are and where we have been, both personally and professionally. We come out of the holiday season where we have time to be with family, time to relax a bit and slow down, and time to focus on ourselves. When we return to work at the start of the new year, we often get so busy in the day-to-day management of our operations that we fail to assess our businesses in the same manner we do our personal lives.
From a food safety perspective, what better way to assess where we are than to look back at the foodborne illness outbreaks we faced in the United States in 2021? While the actual data from FDA and CDC related to foodborne outbreaks is not finalized, as I looked back on the outbreaks, it seems that they can be summarized in one word – produce! While all outbreaks were not produce-related, there are several that were. A few of which we discussed in the blogs throughout the year.
… as we start the new year, take stock of the food safety practices and systems in your operations, and consider where you want to end the year of 2022.
In November, we discussed the Salmonella Oranienburg outbreak from red, yellow, and white onions. The outbreak investigation is still active, with close to 900 illnesses and 183 hospitalizations. We also experienced several salad-related outbreaks in 2021. In July, BrightFarms recalled a salad mix contaminated with Salmonella Liverpool, the outbreak caused 31 illnesses and four hospitalizations. Later in the year, an E. coli O157:H7 outbreak was linked to spinach, causing 14 outbreaks and four hospitalizations. Closing out the year in December, we had two independent outbreaks of Listeria monocytogenes related to packaged salad mixes, and while both are ongoing, have resulted in 26 illnesses, 22 hospitalizations, and three deaths.
Other outbreaks in 2021 were related to soft cheeses, shrimp, seafood, cake mixes, cashew Brie, and bottled water. In six of the outbreaks, officials were unable to determine the source and in two of the outbreaks, officials have yet to identify the source of contamination.
Thus, as we start the new year, take stock of the food safety practices and systems in your operation, and consider where you want to end the year of 2022. Hopefully, you have a few improvements to your food safety system in mind. If not, take a few lessons from the outbreaks we have experienced over the last year. Are your traceability systems in order? Has your staff been trained to properly handle fresh produce?
Whatever you decide to embark on for the year ahead, start small and don’t try to change everything at the same time. Encourage employee buy-in and focus on those lynchpin behaviors we have discussed before. Think of the new year as a blank canvas. What will your canvas show at the end of the year? Risk Nothing.
Proper Cooking Temperature: A Basic Food Safety Measure
Each summer, we see an increase in the incidence of foodborne illnesses. Perhaps this is because of the warmer temperatures making temperature control for Time/Temperature Control for Safety (TCS) food more difficult or perhaps it is the increased amount of people who are barbequing this time of year – it is National Picnic Month, after all!
Changing Climate: The Unseen Impact on Food Safety
In June, I was asked to participate in the Allinfoodz podcast, put on by a colleague, Dr. Amit Sharma, at Penn State University. One of the points Dr. Sharma wanted to discuss was the impact of climate change on food safety, which is something I was certainly aware of, but not something I had done much research on. However, when preparing for the interview and podcast, it was interesting to learn more about the relationship between the two.
Thawing Food with Food Safety in Mind
There comes a time in almost every foodservice operation where you must thaw food. Yes, I know there are those operations who have moved to fresh products only and don’t have a freezer in-house, but I am willing to bet that is more the exception than the norm. I am almost sure that anyone reading this blog who works in a foodservice operation can regurgitate what methods are acceptable to thaw food per the FDA Model Food Code. In case you don’t recall, I will discuss them briefly, but I wanted to spend some time covering these requirements a bit more in-depth – so you not only know WHAT to do, but the WHY we do it that way.
Addressing Major Food Recalls in Your Business
It seems like every year we have a large-scale food recall that reminds consumers and foodservice operators about the importance of food safety. Not that we need reminded, but it certainly puts the topic in the headlines again. Last year, it was the onion recall. This year, it may very well be the Jiff peanut butter recall, of which we are in the midst of. At the time of the publishing, we are starting to learn more about a potential hepatitis A outbreak linked to strawberries. If you have not been impacted by either of these recalls in your personal or business life, I would be surprised.
