Be mindful about food safety for happy holiday gathering

When people gather for holiday parties and start enjoying each other’s company, it’s easy to make food safety mistakes.

Hosts might lose track of time and forget to put food away while talking with guests. Distractions and time pressures in the kitchen might mean cross-contamination goes unnoticed.

“Especially if you’re in a hurry, you could lose focus on some of those food safety principles,” Steve Schumm says. The director of food and consumer protection for Allen County Department of Health points to the four steps of food safety recommended by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service:

• Clean: Wash hands and surfaces often.

• Separate: Don’t cross-contaminate. Keep raw meat, poultry, eggs, and seafood and their juices away from ready-to-eat foods.

• Cook: Raw meat, poultry, s