flour

Safe Handling of Flour

Dan This Land of Ours

We talk a lot about food safety when it comes to things like poultry, but how about flour? That’s coming up on This Land of Ours.

flour

The holiday season to many of us means baking. Did you know it is possible to get Salmonella and E. coli. from raw flour? Flour is a raw powder made by processing raw grains grown in fields. However, this process does not kill bacteria typically found among foods grown outdoors. So, here are some tips for staying safe while you bake up all those holiday treats.

  • Don’t eat or taste raw dough products or baking mix.
  • Don’t allow raw dough products to be used as crafts or play clay.
  • Don’t use products that contain raw flour, like cake mix or raw batter, to make or consume ready-to-eat products, like milkshakes or ice cream.
  • Keep flour separated from ready-to-eat foods to avoid accidentally consuming raw flour.
  • Refrigerate cookie and pastry dough as stated by their package directions.
  • Thoroughly clean your hands with soap and running water after handling raw flour and foods that contain raw flour. Also, clean your cooking utensils, countertops, and supplies (bowls, baking pans, cutting boards, etc.) with warm, soapy water.

Listen to Sabrina Halvorson’s This Land of Ours program here.

Safe Handling of Flour

Sabrina Halvorson
National Correspondent / AgNet Media, Inc.

Sabrina Halvorson is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster, and public speaker who specializes in agriculture. She primarily reports on legislative issues and hosts The AgNet News Hour and The AgNet Weekly podcast. Sabrina is a native of California’s agriculture-rich Central Valley.