1) Refrigerator Thermometer is Indicator of Food Safety

GARDEN CITY, Kan. – Recent storm-related power outages have prompted food and food safety questions for Kansas State University Research and Extension offices and a recommendation from Linda Walter – family and consumer sciences agent in the Garden City (Finney County), Kan., office – to add refrigerator and freezer thermometers to your shopping list.

In fielding recent calls, Walter’s stock question – How warm did it get in your refrigerator and freezer? – typically stumped callers.   

With an inexpensive refrigerator/freezer thermometer in place, consumers can eliminate the guesswork in evaluating food safety and quality during normal use, as well as after a power outage or appliance failure, Walter said. This includes a thermometer for a second refrigerator or freezer in the basement or garage.

If the temperature in a refrigerator remains at 40 degrees or colder, the food stored there will generally be safe to eat, she said. For optimum food safety and quality, frozen food should be at 0 degrees.

There are exceptions, said Walter, who refers consumers to tips from the United States Department of Agriculture to evaluate food safety after a power outage or appliance failure. (See related story.)

More information on food and food safety is available at county and district Extension offices and on the Extension food safety Web site: www.oznet.ksu.edu/foodsafety.

 

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2) Tips for Evaluating Food Safety After Power Outage  

MANHATTAN, Kan. – An appliance failure or power outages such as those that occurred during recent winter storms can compromise food safety.

“When in doubt, throw it out,” said Karen Blakeslee, Kansas State University Research and Extension food scientist. Blakeslee also shared this list of food safety evaluation tips from the U.S. Department of Agriculture: 

            * Never taste a food to determine its safety.

            * Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to maintain low temperatures. If unopened, a refrigerator will remain safely cold for about four hours. With its door closed, a full freezer will hold temperature for about 48 hours (a half-full one, for 24 hours).  Each door opening causes a significant loss of cold air.

            * After four hours without power or at temperatures above 40 degrees, discard refrigerated perishable foods, such as meat, poultry, fish, soft cheeses, milk, eggs, leftovers and deli items.

            * Food is safe to refreeze if it still contains ice crystals or it is 40 degrees or colder.

“While dry or block ice can keep your refrigerator and freezer as cold as possible when the power may be out for a prolonged period of time, obtaining either during a storm can be a problem,” said Linda Walter, K-State Research and Extension agent in Garden City, Kan.

When her area was hit by recent winter storms, Walter advised consumers to take advantage of the weather and freeze water in plastic containers such as a bucket or milk jug to help cool food in the refrigerator or freezer.

            * If the power has been out for several days, check the temperature on the freezer’s appliance or food thermometer to find out if the food is at 40 degrees or below (safe). Or, if you haven’t been keeping a thermometer in the freezer, check each package of food for ice crystals to determine its safety.

            * If uncooked meat juices have dripped onto other foods, throw those foods away.

 

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3) Tips to Zap Odor After Appliance Failure, Power Outage  

MANHATTAN, Kan. – A power outage or a refrigerator or freezer failure can spoil foods and create unpleasant odors, said Karen Blakeslee, Kansas State University Research and Extension food scientist.

If such odors resist all efforts at removal, the appliance may have to be discarded

Blakeslee recommends checking the owner’s manual provided by the manufacturer for cleaning tips. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s “Consumer Guide to Food Safety” also suggests:

            * Dispose of any spoiled or questionable food, including foods that may be contaminated, for example, by drippings from thawing meat or poultry.

            * Remove shelves, crispers and ice trays. Wash them thoroughly with hot water and detergent. Rinse with a sanitizing solution (1 tablespoon unscented, liquid chlorine bleach per gallon of water).

            * Wash the interior of the refrigerator, including the door, accessories and gasket, with a solution of one quart warm water and two tablespoons of baking soda. Rinse with sanitizing solution (above). Leave the door open for about 15 minutes to allow free air circulation.

            * If odor remains, wipe the inside of the unit with equal parts vinegar (which provides acid that destroys mildew) and water. Consider allowing the appliance to air out for several days.

Other ideas include stuffing the refrigerator and freezer with crumpled newspapers, closing the door and allowing several days for the newspaper to absorb odors. After removing the paper, clean the appliance with vinegar and water, Blakeslee said.

Sprinkling fresh coffee grounds or baking soda in a large, shallow pan and placing it on the bottom shelf of the unit can be helpful in ridding appliances of odors – as can soaking a cotton swab with vanilla extract and placing it inside a freezer (then closing the door). Leave either in place for 24 hours.

Another odor removal method is to place activated charcoal (not charcoal briquettes for grilling) or activated carbon in a shallow bowl and leave it for several days while the refrigerator is running.

The charcoal or carbon is available where aquarium or plant and garden supplies are sold. It will become saturated, but can be reactivated by heating in a 300 degree F oven for one hour. Then it can go back into the refrigerator, so its owner can continue trying this approach for about 10 days.

Commercial products are available, too, said Blakeslee, who suggested again checking the appliance owner’s manual for recommendations.

If such odor removal methods are not successful, the reason may be that food juices and odors have seeped into the insulation. Replacing that insulation will require a professional, she said.

 

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4) Risk Management in Ag Is Focus of Upcoming Workshops

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Strong demand for ethanol, higher insurance premiums and a new Farm Bill are just some of the issues agricultural producers are facing. To address some of the challenges linked to these issues, Kansas State University Research and Extension is sponsoring or co-sponsoring workshops in February and March. 

The “Expanded Risk Assessed Marketing Workshop” will be held Feb. 1 in Wichita, Feb. 20 in Larned and March 9 in Hays.

K-State Research and Extension agricultural economist Art Barnaby, whose work is concentrated in risk management and Kansas Farm Bureau’s Agriculture Solutions director David Spears will be the featured speakers in Wichita. Barnaby and K-State Extension agricultural economist Mike Woolverton will conduct an all day workshop in Larned and Hays.

Registration and other information is available by calling the K-State Research and Extension Sedgwick County office in Wichita for the Feb. 1 workshop at 316-722-7721; the Pawnee County office in Larned for the Feb. 20 workshop at 620-285-6901; or the Ellis County office in Hays for the March 9 workshop at 785-628-9430.

Information about risk assessed marketing is also available on the Extension agricultural economics Web site: http://www.agmanager.info/crops/insurance/.

 

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5) January in the Plains Has Meant Daffodils, as Well as Blizzards

MANHATTAN, Kan. – While parts of the central High Plains were digging out from multiple feet of new snow this month, other parts started noticing an odd phenomenon.

Crocus and daffodil leaves were poking up through the soil – in January.

“That’s unusual, but not very rare for an area that can develop extended warm spells during winter,” said Ward Upham, horticulturist with Kansas State University Research and Extension.

He’s been getting calls from gardeners wanting to know how to slow or stop the emergence.

“They’re right to be concerned. After all, cold weather nearly always returns. So, leaf burn can occur,” Upham said.

Once spring-flowering bulbs “feel the call” to grow, however, humans can’t do much to interfere.

“Fortunately, doing nothing is often the best course. Extensive plant damage actually is rare,” he said. “However, if your area is going to get a sharp temperature drop on the heels of an extended warm period, you might want to throw mulch over the new leaves. That will give the plants some buffering against the cold.

“You’ll need to remove that mulch, though, as soon as temperatures moderate again. Mulch can produce the opposite results from those of an early spring. But, both can interfere with spring bulbs’ timing. ”