Nutrition Food Safety

Keeping Bacteria from Cross Contaminating Your Food

Summary & Participants

Cross contamination in the kitchen can lead to unwanted bacteria showing up on the dinner table.

Medically Reviewed On: August 08, 2008

Webcast Transcript

ANNOUNCER: Raw meat, poultry and seafood can contain harmful bacteria. To keep them from spreading to other food, experts say separate, don’t cross contaminate!

BONNIE TAUB-DIX, RD, AMERICAN DIETETIC ASSOCIATION: What you want to be sure of to avoid cross contamination is by keeping raw food away from ready-to-eat foods. Even when you bring your food from the supermarket to your home, it's important to put raw food like chicken or meat in separate plastic bags, wrap them separately so that the juices from the raw food don't contaminate the fresh food that you're buying.

ANNOUNCER: A cutting board can be a danger zone for cross contamination.

BONNIE TAUB-DIX, RD, AMERICAN DIETETIC ASSOCIATION: If you only have one cutting board, then it's very important that you wash it with warm, soapy water thoroughly in between each use.

ANNOUNCER: The USDA recommends using separate cutting boards for fresh produce and raw meat.

BONNIE TAUB-DIX, RD, AMERICAN DIETETIC ASSOCIATION: I like to have color-coded cutting boards. So I have a cutting board that is orange, which reminds me of a sweet potato and that makes me think that that is what I use for fresh produce, fruits and vegetables, and you can use another color cutting board for meats and raw foods.

ANNOUNCER: Marinades used on raw meat, seafood or poultry can also be a source of cross contamination if they are reused on cooked food.

BONNIE TAUB-DIX, RD, AMERICAN DIETETIC ASSOCIATION:What you could do if you really want to use that marinade is you could boil it. Once you boil it, then it's safe for use on cooked food.

ANNOUNCER: Experts also say you should always use clean utensils and plates for cooked food.

BONNIE TAUB-DIX, RD, AMERICAN DIETETIC ASSOCIATION: Cross contamination can occur not only from cutting boards, but also from the plates that you're using, from your hands, from your dish towel.

ANNOUNCER: Keeping your hands clean is one of your biggest weapons against cross-contamination.

BONNIE TAUB-DIX, RD, AMERICAN DIETETIC ASSOCIATION: It's very important that when you are preparing food, after handling any kind of raw food, that you wash your hands with warm, soapy water.

ANNOUNCER: So be smart! Keep your foods apart! And keep your meals safe. Thanks for joining us on today’s Once Daily.