Bringing Home the Bacon - and the Bacteria - From the Supermarket

You may think it's a stomach virus or a 24-hour bug - but could it really be something you ate? When you bring home groceries from the supermarket, you may also bring home bacteria that can make you sick. If you're pregnant or have a compromised immune system, you're 60 times more vulnerable to such illnesses than most people.

NBC Dateline report

In January, 2006, NBC Dateline took hidden cameras into supermarkets in 27 states. They found expired products like meat, milk and baby formula. At one store, they found a dead rat by a cooler and a cockroach in a store-baked cookie. At other locations, they found blood inside of meat trays, dead flies floating in a puddle of spilled orange juice and sinks that were broken or had no soap. Also found were mouse traps, dirty meat slicers and flies crawling on fruits and vegetables. In many stores, toxic chemicals were stored near foods and perishables were refrigerated at unhealthy temperatures.

Health inspections

Supermarket inspections take place only two or three times a year. Health inspectors look for violations that can cause harm to someone, including:

• Cross-contamination (e.g., use of the same unwashed knife to cut meat, then fruit)
• Improper refrigeration
• Expired foods
• Rodent problems
• Insects
• Poor hand-washing facilities
• Improper storage of toxic chemicals

Shopping tips:

• If produce is prepackaged, look for a thermometer. The temperature should be no higher than 41 degrees.
• Choose raw meats and perishables after you've finished the rest of your shopping.
• Make sure meat packages have no leakage, odor or green color. Place meat and seafood in separate plastic bags to contain juices.
• Check dates for freshness.
• In summer, place meats inside car - in air conditioning - instead of in hot trunk.
• Refrigerate food within 30 minutes.
• When buying fruit like strawberries, look out for spiders and white or gray "fuzz," which could be a spider web or mold. What looks like cotton on grapes is a sign that spiders have been there.

What to do at home

• If a label says a product is prewashed, wash it anyway - even bagged salads.
• Buy a refrigerator thermometer. Keep the temperature no higher than 41 degrees.
• Don't place milk, eggs, baby food, etc. inside the refrigerator door. It's three to five degrees warmer there than the rest of the refrigerator.
• Wash hands before preparing food.
• Use separate cutting boards for raw meats and vegetables. Don't use old wooden boards.
• Wash all produce. Don't use soap.
• Use cooler to transport perishable foods. If left unrefrigerated for more than two hours, discard.
• Break lettuce apart and rinse with cold water. This eliminates 98 percent of contaminants.
• Don't defrost meat at room temperature. Place on the bottom refrigerator shelf for a day or two. You can also place it under cold, running water for two hours or cook it frozen.

What to remember

Avoid foodborne illnesses by washing your hands and work area frequently and controlling temperatures. Remember to keep cold foods cold and hot foods hot.

Related Articles Foodborne Illnesses Are You at Risk for a Foodborne Illness? When to Run to the Doctor Contamination at the Cosmetics Counter

External Sources United States Department of Agriculture Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Federal Drug Administration National Association of Convenience Stores

This article was reviewed and updated June 2007.

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