Stay Safe, Avoid Food Borne Illnesses When Cooking with Kids

The recent cyclospora alert and lettuce recall is an important reminder that food safety is a critical part of cooking with children. While eating fruits and vegetables is a HUGE part of a healthy diet, raw foods like lettuce, raspberries, sugar snap peas and herbs can sometimes carry harmful germs.  Learning how to properly wash, prepare, and care for food helps young chefs feel empowered to explore new ingredients and create delicious snacks and meals. 

Here are some common questions about cyclospora and how to prevent food borne illnesses. 

What is cyclospora and how do you get it? Cyclosporiasis is a stomach and intestinal infection. Cyclospora is a microscopic parasite that can make people sick when they eat contaminated food. It is not contagious. The main symptom is “explosive” and watery diarrhea. If you observe a child with these symptoms, report immediately and head to the doctor for treatment. According to the CDC, most people with healthy immune systems will eventually recover from cyclosporiasis without treatment.

Can you prevent cyclosporiasis? Experts aren’t not sure, but they share the best way to prevent food borne illnesses is to thoroughly wash hands and produce. 

Let’s get into the tips:

1. Wash Your Hands. Every Time, All The Time!

Before the chopping, mixing, and tasting begins, start with clean hands! Encourage young chefs to wash their hands with soap and water before handling food and throughout the cooking process. Here’s a handy-dandy video tutorial you can use to demonstrate. 

One way to keep children’s hands clean is encouraging them to “catch a fairy” with their hands! Or, for older students, have them think about how their hands are actually kitchen tools. If they wouldn’t put a fork in their hair, or touch their friend with a lemon squeezer, they wouldn’t do those things with their fingers either. 

2. Prepare Your Produce.

Every great recipe starts with ingredients that are ready for your cooking adventure! Make washing and preparing produce part of the cooking process. Here’s how:

• Wash all fruits and vegetables thoroughly under cool, running water before eating, cutting, or cooking (yes, even if the package says the produce is pre-washed!).

• Skip soap, bleach, or commercial produce washes. Cool, running water is all you need.

• Give firm fruits and vegetables a little extra care by gently scrubbing items like cucumbers, melons, and carrots with a clean produce brush.

• Check your ingredients before cooking and cut away any bruised or damaged areas before eating. 

3. Store Your Ingredients Safely.

Store cut, peeled, or cooked fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator within two hours to help keep them fresh and safe to enjoy. Proper storage also helps reduce food waste and makes the most of every ingredient. 

4. Stay Up to Date on Food Recalls

Even the freshest ingredients can sometimes be impacted by food safety concerns. Check sources, like the CDC’s Current Foodborne Outbreaks page, for food recall updates to make informed choices and keep food safe.

5. Choose Local When Possible. 

With shorter supply chains and fewer points of handling, locally grown food is more transparent and less likely to be involved in large food safety recalls. When possible, support a farmer and choose local!  If you are in Atlanta like us, you can visit a local farmers market, like Community Farmers Market or get local food delivered through services like Fresh Harvest. Or, if you’re at a school district, you can ask your food distributor about locally grown options. 

Stay safe out there, y’all!