Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department outlines tips for summer food safety

PARKERSBURG — Summer temperatures make it more difficult to maintain foods at safe temperatures at picnics and cookouts.

The Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department has tips on how to keep the food safe to eat:

* Summer heat stresses refrigerators. Use a thermometer to monitor the temperature of the refrigerator regularly to assure that it is consistently 41 degrees F or below. The freezer temperature should be 0 degrees F or below. Have the refrigerator or freezer serviced if it is not keeping foods cold enough.

* Make grocery shopping the last stop before going home. Foods left in a car in summer heat can deteriorate rapidly. Refrigerate or freeze meat, poultry, seafood, milk, cheese, sprouts and other perishable food items within two hours of purchasing. Refrigerate within one hour if the temperature outside is above 90. Remember that tomatoes and melons need to be refrigerated after they are cut.

* Always marinate food in the refrigerator, never on the counter.

* Plan food preparation to minimize opening and closing the doors on the refrigerator.

* Never thaw food at room temperature, such as on the counter top. Safe ways to defrost food are in the refrigerator, in cold water or in the microwave. Food thawed in cold water or in the microwave must be immediately cooked.

* Rapidly cool food after cooking by dividing larger amounts for storage in smaller containers. Put it in shallow containers where the food is not more than 2-3 inches deep, using an ice bath to rapidly chill foods or cooling foods in metal containers instead of plastic or ceramic ones. Make sure to leave the food uncovered until after it cools.

* Immediately refrigerate leftovers after a meal. Discard perishable foods that have been out of temperature control for more than two hours.

* Transport perishable food to a picnic or party in a cooler on ice.

* Store and serve the food in a shaded area whenever possible when serving food outdoors.

* Serve perishable food on ice in an outdoor buffet. Discard perishable foods that have been out of temperature control for more than an hour if the temperature is above 85.

The health department serves Wood, Wirt, Calhoun, Pleasants, Ritchie and Roane counties with its main office at 1824 Murdoch Ave. in Parkersburg open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Call 304-485-7374 or go to movhd.com for more information.