Does Your Food Sizzle Before it’s Grilled?

Does Your Food Sizzle Before it’s Grilled?

Jul 26, 2013

With summer temperatures in the 90s across much of the U.S., food suppliers may find their products experience high heat long before they reach the grill.

When the Indiana State Police checked the refrigerated trucks traveling its highways last summer, the results were frightening. Too often, especially with small operators, refrigeration units were turned off to save money or weren’t working properly. Yogurt was warm, meats were thawed and blood was dripping onto produce. Even after washing, those vegetables weren’t safe to eat. The problem wasn’t with just a few isolated trucks, either.

The State Police said improper food temperatures were a growing problem that threatened the safety of the U.S. food supply. Indiana’s spot checks uncovered multiple gross deficiencies, but even seemingly minor temperature excursions allow food to become breeding grounds for e.coli, salmonella and other deadly pathogens.

Food shippers and the wholesales, grocers and restaurants that receive those shipments have a responsibility to ensure the foods they handle are safe. In addition to visual inspections upon receipt, they should also institute a temperature monitoring system. With a monitoring system, they will know – and can prove – whether proper temperatures were maintained throughout transit. If food warmed in shipping but was re-chilled before delivery, monitors will show that. And, if everything worked perfectly, the monitors will show that, too.

Don’t let food sizzle before it reaches the kitchen or grill. Contact ShockWatch for more information about ways to ensure food safety with a thorough temperature monitoring system. Food safety is too important to be left to chance.

 

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