There are 4 simple steps you can do that will greatly reduce the problem of contamination and spread of bacteria in your kitchen.

Cleaning – Wash surfaces you prepare food on often, also wash your hands often as well.
Prevent cross comtamination of foods - keep them separated.
Make sure foods you cook are brought up to the proper temperatures to make sure any disease causing bacteria are killed..
Refrigerate foods quickly to prevent bacteria growth.

Kitchen surfaces that may have contact with foods or your hands should be routinely disinfected with some type of antibacterial agent. I prefer regular chlorine bleach for this. Use ¾ cup of bleach to 1 gallon of water wipe counter tops, cutting boards, sinks, sink fixtures, refrigerator handles and anything else that you have come in contact with while working with foods.   Let stand for approximately 10 minutes then rinse and wipe down with a clean wet cloth.
Handling foods safely is important in preventing food borne illness.
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Kitchen toweling, wash cloths and sponges need to be washed on a daily basis. Bacteria grows rapidly in a wet kitchen wash rag or sponge and it these are not washed very often they are literally a bacteria mop spreading germs and possible pathogens to every surface they touch.
Paper towels are a good alternative for kitchen clean ups. Paper towels are also a good alternative to cloth toweling.

Fruits and vegetables need be washed well in running water. Firm skinned items should be given a scrub with a clean vegetable brush. Then rinsed well under in flowing water.
Remove the outer leaves on cabbage and head lettuce, if possible trim the stem end and wash under running water.
Fruits such as melons that have skins that are difficult to wash even with a brush can be disinfected with the chlorine rinse. The is no problem doing this with these fruits as the skin is discarded and by disinfecting them you will prevent contamination from the skin being transferred to the fruit.
Fruits and vegetables that have been waxed should be pealed. Waxing can seal in both pesticides as well as bacteria.

Cutting boards should be used for specific food Items. One board for fruits and vegetables another board for meats. These should be washed with hot soapy water, rinsed thoroughly and then given a rinse in an antibacterial solution.
Note: wooden cutting boards look nice, but perhaps one of the synthetic boards would be better for home usage. These can be scrubbed with hot soapy water, disinfected or even place into the dishwasher on a routine basis whereas wood will just not tolerate this type of treatment.

Do not cross contaminate foods - keep raw meat and poultry away from ready to eat foods and other items . This separation should start in your grocery cart and continue right on through to placing them away from other items in your refrigerator.
Never place cooked meats, poultry, or seafood back on the same plates that held uncooked items.


When cooking meats, seafood, and poultry make sure they are brought up to the recommended temperatures to ensure that the food is safe and all problem bacteria has been destroyed. Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temps.

Poultry: 165 degrees - check the temperature in the thickest part of the breast or in the inner part of the thigh.

Roasts and Steaks: 145 degrees

Ground meats: 165 degrees

Fish: 145 degrees or until flesh is opaque and flakes easily.

Bring gravies, sauces and soups to a boil when re-heating. Heat other leftovers to at least 165 degrees.

The last step is make sure foods are chilled promptly and that the temperature is 40 degrees or under. To achieve this the refrigerator needs to be open enough for air to flow around foods so don’t over fill it.

When freezing make sure the temps are 0 degrees or lower.

A few more food handling tips:
Never thaw foods at room temperature for longer than 2 hours before refrigerating. Foods thawed in cold water or the microwave should be cooked immediately.

Never allow raw poultry, meats, eggs or other cooked foods to sit at room temperatures for more than two hours before refrigerating or freezing. The shortest time not refrigerated is best.

Foods should always be marinated in the refrigerator.

If there are large amounts of leftovers these should be divided into smaller containers to ensure rapid chilling or freezing