4 Steps to a Safe 4th of July BBQ

This 4th of July, the Ad Council, the United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Health and Human Services are letting the founding fathers do the talking this week when it comes to food bourne illness.

Americans spend $400 million on beef alone for July 4th barbeques, but not all of that meat is prepared properly - leading to hospital visits and the use of sick days.

Here are a few reasons why cases of foodborne illnesses surge during the summer:

• Incidents of food poisoning surge over the summer months because bacteria multiply faster when it’s warm
• USDA research shows that 1 out of every 4 hamburgers turns brown before it has reached a safe internal temperature!
• New FDA research done in collaboration with USDA shows that only 23 percent of Americans who own a food thermometer actually use it when grilling hamburgers
• 48 million Americans (at least 1 in 6) will get sick from foodborne illness this year, resulting in roughly 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths

How can families avoid these serious public health threats during the July 4th holiday and summer months when they are at most risk? Just listen to the founding fathers.

George Washington says…CLEAN

John Adams says…SEPARATE

Thomas Jefferson says…COOK

Benjamin Franklin says…CHILL

Learn more at foodsafety.gov. For more tips, go to FoodSafety.gov and check out the ‘Ask Karen’ app, available in English and Spanish, to get access to more than 1,300 answers to food safety questions.