With summertime just around the corner, many families are preparing for a variety of outdoor activities and road trips. Whether it is a relaxing vacation you are planning or an excitement-filled adventure, one thing is certain: keeping your family healthy and well-fed is important for everyone’s enjoyment of the summer fun!

As you pack the cooler with snacks to munch on while traveling or foods you plan on eating once you have reached your destination, take time to follow a few simple food safety precautions. A small amount of planning on your part could save your family from a potential food poisoning disaster. The U. S. Department of Agriculture stands behind these helpful tips to keep foods safe to eat.

Get Ready To Travel!

• When traveling, keep perishable foods from spoiling by packing them, along with ice or freezer packs, in a cooler. Fill your coolers all the way up with either food or ice/cold packs so that the inside temperature will be as cold as possible.
• Put drinks in a separate cooler so that the food cooler stays closed as much as possible during a road trip. You also might want to bring two coolers: one for snacks to eat while traveling and one for foods to eat once you get where you are going.
• In order to prevent harmful bacteria from infecting ready-to-eat foods in your cooler, wrap and pack raw or frozen meats and poultry separately from other cold foods. Pack meat and poultry when it is frozen to keep the food colder for a longer time.
• If you go out to the ball park or on a camping trip, make sure to keep your cooler in the shade as much as possible, or cover it with a lightly colored blanket. When you and your family travel to the beach, take your cooler along and wedge it into the sand to help keep it cool. Throw a lightly colored blanket over it and, if possible, cover it with a beach umbrella. These simple steps will help your cooler to maintain its cold temperature and keep your food safe.

Serving That Delicious Food!

• Throughout the activities that summer brings, keeping food at the right temperature is important in making sure of its safety. Take foods out of cooling containers just before serving or eating. Food should not be left out of the cooler for more than two hours. If the temperature outside is greater than 90°F, the time frame is reduced to no more than one hour. After this time has passed, the food is no longer safe. Throw it out!
• Pack disposable moist towelettes to keep hands and utensils clean on the road.

Maintaining foods at appropriate temperatures and keeping hands and utensils clean are essential components of practicing food safety. Throughout all of your summer activities, this can be done with some simple planning!

Try these Turkey Avocado Roll-Ups to take along on your next weekend excursion. They are quick, healthy, and will help fuel your traveling experiences.

These recipes will travel with you safely and easily. Make sure to put the foods in tightly sealed containers, and then just add them to your cooler. Enjoy!