Use safe food in hot weather

When buying food, you should prioritize clear origins; buy at supermarkets, reputable stores, and traditional markets that ensure hygiene. In the photo: People choose to buy food at a supermarket (illustrative photo). Photo: YEN LAN

According to warnings from the Ministry of Health, food poisoning cases often increase in the summer, especially between April and August. Outdoor temperatures often exceed 350C, sometimes even above 400C, causing food to quickly change and spoil if not properly preserved.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Lam, former Deputy Director of the National Institute of Nutrition, commented: “High temperatures cause harmful bacteria such as Salmonella, E.coli, Listeria... to grow very quickly on fresh food as well as cooked food that has been left at room temperature for too long. This is a common cause of food poisoning in the summer.”

Statistics from medical facilities nationwide show that the number of hospitalizations due to acute diarrhea and digestive disorders increases significantly during the hot season. In particular, young children and the elderly are the most vulnerable due to their weak resistance.

A worrying reality is that dirty and unsafe food is still prevalent in many traditional markets. Consumers, due to their thrifty mentality or long-standing habits, still buy food of unknown origin, without packaging, and without ensuring hygiene.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Lam noted: “Food that is displayed for sale but not covered, left in the sun for a long time, and is full of flies, is very susceptible to bacterial contamination. Many types of food that look normal on the outside but have deteriorated on the inside, if used, will be dangerous to health.”

Wash food thoroughly with clean water or soak in diluted salt water before cooking. Cook thoroughly, especially meat, fish, and eggs. Avoid eating raw salads and rare foods during the hot season. Drink boiled water that has cooled, and avoid using untreated water. Avoid leaving food outside or carrying it on long trips if you do not have the means to refrigerate it.

Subjectivity in the selection, use and preservation of food can lead to poisoning, digestive disorders or dangerous infectious diseases. Therefore, every consumer needs to be extremely careful and proactive in protecting the health of themselves and their families.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Lam recommends: “Ensuring food safety is the responsibility of the whole society, but each family and each individual can contribute to protecting their health with very specific actions: choosing a reputable place to buy, cooking thoroughly, and preserving properly. Do not take it lightly or rely on it, because the consequences of food poisoning are sometimes very serious.”

During the hot season, street food is a concern for many people regarding food safety. According to MSc. Le Sy Kim, Head of the Food Safety Department (Department of Health), the People's Committees of communes/wards/towns are responsible for implementing state management of food safety in the area for food service establishments with a business scale of less than 50 meals/serving, street food businesses, small-scale food production and trading establishments..., according to Decision 12 issued by the People's Committee of Phu Yen province, on regulations on assignment and decentralization of state management of food safety in the province. The Department of Health has issued documents directing local health centers to regularly monitor and guide street food vendors to properly implement food hygiene and safety requirements. "Mainly monitoring and guiding," said Mr. Le Sy Kim.

In order to protect people from food safety risks, the Food Safety Department (Ministry of Health) recently recommended "Be careful when buying, using and preserving food during the hot season". First is to choose safe food. According to the Food Safety Department, when buying food, you should prioritize clear origin; buy at supermarkets, reputable stores, traditional markets to ensure hygiene. Choose fresh, intact products; avoid choosing food with strange smells, unusual colors, crushed or leaking. Buyers need to read the label carefully, check the expiration date, storage conditions and ingredients if it is prepackaged food.

In particular, be careful with perishable foods such as meat, fish, eggs, milk, cooked food, etc. because these are "nests" of bacteria if not properly preserved.

Second is to store food properly. The refrigerator's cool and freezer compartments are ideal places to store perishable foods, but they need to be arranged according to the rules: Raw meat and seafood should be kept separate, avoiding contact with vegetables and fruits to avoid cross-contamination.

Cooked food should be covered, using safe glass or plastic containers.

Do not leave leftover food at room temperature for more than 2 hours. In the hot season, high temperatures cause bacteria to grow rapidly. It is important to note that you should not refreeze thawed food.

The third important thing is to use food properly, eat cooked food and drink boiled water. Wash food with clean water, or soak it in diluted salt water before processing. Cook thoroughly, especially meat, fish, and eggs. Limit eating raw salads and rare foods during the hot season. Drink boiled water that has cooled, avoid using untreated water. Limit leaving food outdoors or bringing it on long trips if there are no conditions for cold storage. In addition, the Food Safety Department also advised people not to store too much food if they do not have a large capacity refrigerator.

Preparing food properly is the right thing to do to keep your meals and your family safe, proactively preventing food poisoning and foodborne diseases.

5 golden keys to safe food

1. Keep clean

- Wash hands before preparing food and regularly during food preparation.

- Wash your hands after going to the toilet.

- Clean all surfaces and food preparation utensils.

- Keep food and kitchen areas clean to prevent insects, pests and other animals from entering.

Graphics: YEN LAN

2. Keep raw and cooked foods separate.

- Do not mix raw meat, poultry and seafood with other foods.

- Use separate kitchen utensils such as knives and cutting boards to prepare raw foods.

- Store food in covered containers to avoid contact between raw and cooked food.

3. Cook and prepare properly

- Cook food thoroughly, especially meat, poultry, eggs and seafood.

- Foods such as soups and broths must be boiled. For meat and poultry, after cooking or boiling, the water inside the meat must be clear and no longer pink.

- Thoroughly reheat leftover food from the previous meal.

4. Keep food at safe temperatures

- Do not leave cooked food at room temperature for more than 2 hours.

- Refrigerate all prepared and perishable foods immediately (below 50C).

- Keep cooked food at high temperature (above 600C) before eating.

- Do not store food for too long, even in the refrigerator.

- Do not defrost frozen food at room temperature.

5. Use clean water and safe ingredients

- Use clean water or treated water to prepare food.

- Choose to buy fresh, whole foods.

- Choose processed foods that are safe, such as pasteurized milk.

- Wash fruits and vegetables, especially raw fruits and vegetables.