When going to university or living away from home for the first time, you may be taking on more responsibility for deciding the food you eat, and how you prepare it, than before.
Now that you may be cooking more, it’s important to understand the basics of food hygiene so that you can stay safe and not let food poisoning affect your experience.
Use this student guide to explore the basics of food hygiene and safety to protect yourself and those around you.
Avoiding food poisoning at home
Food in your fridge may contain harmful bacteria and if stored for too long, at the wrong temperature, or not cooked properly, can cause food poisoning. Harmful bacteria can also spread on unclean surfaces around your kitchen.
Avoid food poisoning at home by understanding food safety and applying good food hygiene practices in your home.
Understanding use-by and best before dates
We know that when budgets are tight, food hygiene can slip. It might be tempting to eat food that is beyond the use-by date, but doing so puts you at increased risk of food poisoning.
It’s important to know the difference between a use-by date and a best before date so that you can make safe food choices. Always check the label to make sure your food is in date and safe to eat.
A use-by date on food is about safety. This is the most important date to remember. You can eat food until and, on the use-by date but not after. You will see use-by dates on food that goes off quickly, such as meat products or ready-to-eat salads.
Food can look and smell fine even after its use-by date, but that doesn’t mean it’s safe to eat. It could still make you ill. You cannot see, smell or taste the bacteria that cause food poisoning so should never trust the sniff test on use by date products.
The best before date is about quality, not safety. The food will be safe to eat after this date but may not be at its best. Its flavour and texture might not be as good; you can use the sniff test on best before date products as these are about quality not safety.
If your food is close to the use-by date, you can help keep the food for longer by freezing it. A freezer acts as a pause button, meaning food in a freezer won’t deteriorate and most bacteria cannot grow in it. You can freeze pre-packaged food right up to the day of the use-by date. See below for more information on freezing and defrosting.
Food hygiene in a shared fridge
We realise that at university, and when living away from home for the first time, you may only have access to one shelf in a shared fridge.
Normally we recommend that you store raw meat, fish and shellfish on the bottom shelf of your fridge. This is to reduce the risk of cross-contamination with other ready-to-eat foods. However, in a shared fridge this may not be possible.
When sharing a fridge, avoid ready-to-eat food being stored beside open packets of raw meat and fish on the same shelf. It may help to put any opened raw meat or fish into separate containers that are sealed or waterproof. This will help avoid leakages and limit the spread of harmful bacteria.
You should also avoid putting open tin cans in the fridge as the food inside may experience bacterial growth and develop a metallic taste. Follow the manufacturers instructions or place the contents in an appropriate storage container before refrigerating.
Remember to check the contents in the fridge regularly so that any foods past their use-by dates are disposed of quickly.
Cooking your food properly
Cooking your food at the right temperature and for the correct length of time will ensure that any harmful bacteria are killed.
It’s important that you always check the advice on food packaging and follow the cooking instructions provided until the food is steaming hot.
Some products such as breaded chicken, chicken goujons and other meat products, are often assumed to be ready to eat, but can actually contain raw meat. Such products are not ready to eat, unless stated on the packaging. Always check the cooking instructions, heat appropriately and ensure you wash your hands after handling raw meat products.
Try not to cook different foods at the same time in the oven if they require different temperatures, as this may lead to some food not being fully cooked. If you do cook different items at the same time, put the item which takes the longest to cook in the oven first, then check on it while cooking before adding the other foods. You can use a timer to help with this. Make sure you are following the instructions on the manufacturer’s packaging.
Different types of meat will have different cooking requirements:
- red meat such as steaks can be served pink, rare or bloody and will be safe to eat as long as the surface has been adequately seared
- other meats, like chicken and pork, as well as minced meat products such as burgers, kebabs and sausages, should not be served pink or rare as bacteria can be in the meat
Harmful bacteria such as Salmonella and Campylobacter can be found in raw meat and undercooked poultry. This means inadequate cooking can lead to food poisoning.
Hand washing
To reduce the risk of spreading harmful bacteria you should regularly wash your hands.
You should wash your hands:
- before preparing food
- before handling cooked or ready to eat food
- before eating and after preparing raw foods, or handling its packaging
- after handling waste and touching bins
- after cleaning surfaces
- after eating and drinking
- after sneezing, touching pets or going to the toilet
Where possible you should wash your hands with warm soapy water for at least 20 seconds.
Making the most of your food
When budgets are tight, avoiding unnecessary food waste can be a really useful way to make your money go further. This does not mean having to compromise on food safety.
Love Food Hate Waste (Opens in a new window)have some useful tips and advice on how to make your food go further and reduce waste.
Leftovers
Reusing and reinventing your leftovers is a great way to make the most of your food. Not only will you save money, having prepared meals is also convenient for days when you don’t have to time to cook, or don’t feel like cooking. Cool and cover your leftovers, and put them in a fridge or freezer within one to two hours. Leftovers stored in the fridge should be eaten within 48 hours.
You can split leftovers into smaller portions so that they cool quicker. This can also help portion control and planning for future meals.
Information sourced from https://www.food.gov.uk/studentfood