County Extension

Good intentions might not be good enough. This is especially true when cooking for a large group of people. Many community groups, volunteer organizations and churches hold big food events such as fundraising dinners, bake sales or potluck lunches for members. Even when these groups think they are doing a good job, food events present food safety risks. Over the past decade there have been multiple outbreaks and hundreds of illnesses linked to community-based meal events. You don’t want to be part of these statistics.

This is the time people begin to think about making changes in their lives to achieve better health in the New Year. These changes and goals come in the form of resolutions that get broken quickly. I think one of the biggest problems with resolutions is people try to do too much all at once.

An idea I heard about from Food and Health Communication (foodandhealth.com) is to develop a plan for the whole year. The concept is to make one little change each month and then keep building on these changes. At the end of the year perhaps you’ll have 12 new, healthier habits.

One thing we don’t want to give or share this holiday season is a foodborne illness. Sometimes called food poisoning, a foodborne illness is a sickness that you get from eating or drinking something that has been contaminated with disease causing microorganisms, chemicals or other harmful substances.

This scenario may be familiar to you: the office break room or conference room always seems to have cookies or donuts available for snacking. Or perhaps your co-workers frequently gather for birthdays or special occasions. No matter where you look at the office, there is always food available and easy to grab.