Summer BBQs: Cook Meat Thoroughly to Avoid Food Poisoning - East Idaho News
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Summer BBQs: Cook Meat Thoroughly to Avoid Food Poisoning

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Getty 070512 BBQ?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1372773890266iStockphoto/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — With Fourth of July just a few days away, many Americans are likely preparing to hold a cookout in their backyards.  But before you lay that burger on the grill this Independence Day weekend, there are some things you should consider first.

“Make sure you use a thermometer and make sure that the internal temperature for the burgers on the grill reach 160 [degrees] because then you know it’s at a safe level,” says Brian Ronholm, Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

With higher temperatures in the summer, harmful bacteria can multiply much quicker than at any time of the year.  And that can lead to a greater chance of getting food poisoning from outdoor cooking.

“Forty-eight million people get sick from foodborne illness each year.  That leads to 128,000 hospitalizations and it unfortunately contributes to 3,000 deaths,” says Ronholm.

His other advice: “Make sure you separate meat from the raw vegetables, make sure you wash your hands.”

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