Beyond Bird Flu: Keeping Your HOME Safe from Contaminated Foods

Eggs, chicken, milk and dairy products – questions surrounding the safety of these foods, which shared kitchens bring intimately into contact with us and our loved ones, are more urgent than ever in the face of recent outbreaks of bird flu up and down the eastern seaboard of the United States and in every other part of the world. According to a recent New York Times article, bird flu has infected US dairy herds, poultry farms in Australia, and even led to the first reported isolation of the virus from a man in the United States. So what can you do at home to ensure your family stays out of harm’s way?

NAVIGATING MILK SAFETY IN YOUR HOME

For the dairy-obsessed, the bird flu tale takes a complicated turn. In 2002, more than 80 dairy herds in the United States were contaminated with the H5N1 strain. Does this mean our milk is exposed to a disease-causing bird virus? Actually, it is safe because the pasteurisation of milk kills many viruses including the bird flu one by raising the temperature. However, uncertainty looms over unpasteurised or ‘raw’ milk: studies suggested that consuming it might put you at risk of falling ill. Nevertheless, for homes worldwide, pasteurised dairy products are the answer to keeping the kitchen avian flu-free.

THE CHICKEN CONUNDRUM AT HOME

The odd dalliance of H5N1 with domestic poultry presents a cautious optimism. Though outbreaks reemerge with barely a respite, when bird flu does infect commercial poultry, it is not easily passed on in chicken meat. Once again, though, home safety measures are non-negotiable. Home safety measures like proper handling, storage and cooking are important because they will protect your home kitchen from pathogens like Salomonella and Campylobacter as much as from bird flu virus. ‘Better safe than sorry’ didn’t come from nowhere – safety really should be our top ingredient in every chicken dish we bring to our home table.

EGG SAFETY MEASURES FOR YOUR HOME

It would be chicken if not for the fact that diseased birds often survive the cull and, just like the odor from poultry farms, the eggs in our homes are also under the magnifying glass. Is it possible to infect people with the bird flu virus through bird eggs, scientifically known as avian eggs? If the eggs are cooked thoroughly, the path is clear to keep our homes protected. Repeat after me: bird flu virus does not need to enter your kitchen through eggs. It can still gain access if you do not cook eggs, but it has to get inside first. You can use the same strategy to protect yourself against any other disease carried by birds when seeing their excreta on the streets or when working in the fields.

Tips for Healthier HOME Cooking

Accepting bird flu might require special precautions in the home – better practice with cooking and handling – but it means pasteurised milk and milk products, no raw dairy. It means better storage and preparation for chicken, and better methods of cooking eggs. These are all steps in the right direction and will lessen the potential for bird flu as well as bolster the home’s fight against other foodborne illness.

Shopping Safely for Dairy and Poultry in YOUR HOME

Safe food at home begins with careful shopping: purchasing pasteurised products, making sure meat and eggs are refrigerated right away, and avoiding cross-contamination. A good cool bag when transporting food home, and general cleanliness will go a long way towards reducing the successful introduction of bird flu, and many other pathogens, into your home environment.

HOME Hygiene Practices to Adopt

In addition to cooking and shopping, keeping your own environment clean and sanitised is an important part of bird flu defence. Frequently disinfecting surfaces (particularly those that contact raw foods), maintaining good hygiene, and training all members of your home to handle food safely, the home can remain a refuge for bird flu and other infectious challenges.

Understanding HOME Safety

But your home is a safe place, and bird flu can be managed in that safe space by carefully informed and cautious practices: milk, chicken and eggs can continue to be enjoyed by families around the world, as long as pasteurisation, proper cooking and good hygienic handling are taken into account. The home remains an affectionate household, a health-giving space, despite the outbreak of bird flu. It is in such moments of health crises that we are reminded that, with knowledge, caution and care, the loveable house, along with all the people, pets and possessions that bring comfort and happiness to our domestic spaces, will be protected.