Top Food Safety Websites

partnersYou ask…How do I learn about food safety regulation?  What pathogens in foods can make me sick?  What temperature should I safely cook my roast beef to and how do I take food temperatures?   How do I clean and sanitize anything according to the FDA Food Code?   What and where is the  most recent version of the FDA Food Code? Where can I find food safety educational materials galore in book form or online?  Do I need them in Spanish or a Chinese dialect?

Of course, answers to these and other burning food safety questions are hot on the Internet circuits today. If there’s a lot you need to know, realize you are not alone. With thousands of food professionals tackling the same issues you are, you can bet there is talk about it all on the Web. Where do you find it? Here is a guide to some helpful food safety websites.

FDA Food Code: It’s all here in whatever year’s update your state follows (2013 is the most current) | Visit>

FDA HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) Information on food safety management systems and education.  Click on Retail & Food Service HACCP for greater detail. | Visit>

CDC Estimating Foodborne Illness in the U.S.: Latest information on foodborne illness in the U.S. | Visit>

FDA Bad Bug Book: This is the site with the famous name! Check here for details about a long list of foodborne pathogens, and follow links to outbreak information and related Web pages.  Download the latest version of the book for free. | Visit> 

USDA Food & Nutrition Service: The site provides food safety education and training resources for school food service professionals and child nutrition program operators. | Visit>

Handwashing Leadership Forum:  This site is a wealth of information on the many elements of clean hands focused on the food industry with lots of training tools.  Great resources here for hand hygiene. | Visit>

FDA’s Oral Culture Learner Project: provides materials in many languages with visual pictures to help food employees understand the reasons why following proper food safety practices is important to prevent illnesses, deaths, and loss of income and reputation resulting from food-related outbreaks. | Visit>

International Food Safety Icons : Visual Logos about food safety concepts that can be downloaded & used in training materials from the International Association of Food Protection. | Visit>

Iowa State University Extension Food Safety Project: A website offering food safety lessons, reference to common pathogens, HACCP & food law information, news, and links to more food safety sites. | Visit>

National Restaurant Association & ServSafe: ServSafe materials for manager certification, foodworker training, and other foods service educational tools.  New training info for alcohol service & food allergens is also available. | Visit>

FoodHandler Inc.:  Several free downloads, temperature charts, and signs. Handwashing signs available in English and Spanish. | Visit>

Bottom Line:  There are multitudes of food safety sites to surf that we didn’t list, but these will get you started.

 

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About the Author: Lacie Thrall

Lacie Thrall PictureLacie Thrall passed away in early 2017 after a long illness. She dedicated her 35-year career to improving the health and well-being of others by promoting food safety best practices. Lacie worked in environmental health for 17 years before joining FoodHandler in 1997 as the Director of Safety Management. While at FoodHandler, she trained employees and customers on safe food handling practices, including proper hand hygiene and glove use. Later as a FoodHandler consultant, Lacie provided the foodservice industry with food safety information and advice through her blog on FoodHandler.com.

The Physical Elements of Food Service Hand Hygiene – Part I

September is National Food Safety Education Month and the theme has a rhyme to it – “Keep Hands Clean with Good Hygiene”. Hand washing is one of the public’s best defenses against the spread of both common and rare, even life-threatening, diseases including those caused by food, and against gastrointestinal infections caused by such organisms as the Norovirus, which plagues the cruise ship industry and food service in general.

The Incredible, Edible Egg Safety Quiz

This nutritious, delicate food is a part of many food service menus as a main course and one of the most common ingredients. The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture says Americans consume an average of 234 eggs per person per year. Eggs have also been the source of some significant foodborne outbreaks in the U.S. from one specific type of Salmonella. While eggs are an important source of protein in the diet, an estimated 1 in 20,000 eggs in the U.S. supply will contain the SE (Salmonella Enteritidis) bacteria and can cause illness if eaten raw in foods or not thoroughly cooked before consumption.

Fetching a Pail of Good, Safe Water

In the ambitious fight for food safety, don’t overlook the safety and quality of the crystal clear liquid coming out of your faucet. The United States has controls in place to ensure we have potable (safe) water that is treated and filtered to make it taste better and have no odor. Water standards and treatment are also important in food service so we don’t need a repairman twice a year to chip away the block of lime on the dishwashers heating element with a hammer and chisel in order to replace it.