Why wash your hands? Because soap and hot water help remove harmful bacteria and other germs, including the "bugs" that cause food-related illness. September is National Food Safety Education Month^TM. Across the country, food safety experts are stressing the importance of washing hands, utensils and kitchen surfaces to reduce the risk of bacteria and other germs that could get onto food.

Wash your hands with warm soapy water for at least 20 seconds before you prepare food. Always wash them again after handling raw meat or poultry. Harmful bacteria multiply quickly on kitchen towels, so wash them often in the hot cycle of your washing machine. Equally important, after you use cutting boards, knives or other utensils for one food item, wash them in hot soapy water before you use them for another one.

To learn more about safe food handling, come to (NAME AND LOCATION OF EVENT) for (ACTIVITIES AND/OR MATERIALS). That's (NAME AND LOCATION OF EVENT) for (ACTIVITIES AND/OR MATERIALS). And remember, wash hands and surfaces often to prevent foodborne illness.

For National Food Safety Education Month^TM, food safety experts are stressing the importance of washing hands, utensils and kitchen surfaces to reduce the risk of bacteria and other germs getting onto food. Wash your hands with hot soapy water before you start to prepare food and again after handling raw meat or poultry. After using cutting boards, knives or other utensils for one food, wash them before you use them for another one.

To learn more about safe food handling, come to (NAME AND LOCATION OF EVENT) for (ACTIVITIES AND/OR MATERIALS).

^TM International Food Safety Council

^* Distributed July 1998 for use in September 1998 as part of the International Food Safety Council's National Food Safety Education Month.