ABCD’s of Keeping Food Safe in an Emergency
ABCD's of Keeping Food Safe
Frequently Asked Questions
What to Save and What to
Throw Out
During an emergency, it’s necessary to keep in mind the
importance of food and how it too can become affected. Any event, such as
a flood, fire, national disaster or even the loss of power by strong winds, snow
or ice can jeopardize the safety of our food. Food plays a vital role in
everyone’s life, which is why we should know when food is safe for consumption.
Keeping food safe will help minimize the potential loss of food and reduce the
risk of foodborne illnesses.
ABCD’s of Keeping
Food Safe in an Emergency
Always
keep food (especially meat, poultry, fish and eggs) refrigerated at or below 40˚
F and frozen food at or below 0˚F. If you are experiencing loss of power,
make sure to keep the refrigerator and freezer closed as much as possible, this
will maintain the cold temperatures and the food safe for about 4 hours.
With full freezers, the cold temperatures can be maintained for about 48 hours
(24 hours if it’s half full and the door remains closed). If you know
power will be out for prolonged periods of time obtain dry or block ice to keep
your refrigerator as cold as possible. Fifty pounds of dry ice should hold
an 18-cubic foot full freezer for 2 days.
Be
prepared for an emergency by having handy items that don’t require refrigeration
and can be eaten cold or heated on an outdoor grill. Canned goods should
be part of a planned emergency food supply. Such items include canned
goods, boxed or canned milk and shelf-stable food. For infants, make sure
you have ready-to-use baby formula and for your pets, dry and canned food.
Even though an emergency might not be happening, remember to periodically use
and replace these items in order to not end up with expired goods. Freeze
refrigerated items such as leftovers, milk and fresh meat and poultry that you
may not need immediately – this helps keep them at a safe temperature longer.
Make sure to keep a hand-held can opener or purchase items which can be
self-opened.
Consider
what you can do ahead of time to store and maintain food safely
during an emergency. For example, if your home is prone to
flooding, place food in high areas, such as kitchen shelves that
will be out of the way of contaminated water. It is a good
idea to keep coolers handy in case power goes out for more than 4
hours. Fill coolers up with ice or frozen gel packs to
maintain food cold. Plan ahead and know where dry ice and
blocks of ice can be purchased. When your freezer is not full,
keep items close together – this helps the food stay cold longer.
Digital,
dial or instant-read food thermometers and appliance thermometers should always
be kept handy. These items will help you determine if food is at safe
temperatures. Appliance thermometers should always be kept in the
refrigerator and freezer. Regardless of how long the power has been out,
an appliance thermometer will always indicate the temperature within the
refrigerator and freezer. Refrigerator temperature should be 40˚ F or
below: the freezer, 0˚ F or lower. If you’re unsure if something is
cold enough, take its temperature with a food thermometer.
content last updated: June 14, 2006
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