BRIGG BANK HOLIDAY BBQs - FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Have a sizzling and safe barbecue this bank holiday weekend, Brigg people are being advised by North Lincolnshire Council and the Food Standards Agency.
Brigg Blog thinks all local BBQ crews should keep one eye on the weather, based on what's   the Met Office whose forecast you can read here.... reckons is going to happen.


FROM KIRSTY WESTFIELD NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE COUNCIL

If you are aiming to round off the summer holidays with a bank holiday barbecue this weekend, North Lincolnshire Council and Food Standards Agency (FSA) have some good advice to help make it a safe success.
With gourmet burgers in restaurants becoming increasingly popular some people may be tempted to serve their guests burgers that are pink in the middle. But a burger is not like a steak. Steak can be served rare because any contamination on the surface of the meat is destroyed when the steak is seared on the outside.
Burgers are made of minced meat, so any bacteria on the outside of the whole piece of meat are mixed up throughout the burgers when the meat is minced. If bacteria are mixed into the middle of the burger and it isn’t cooked all the way through, the bacteria can survive and cause food poisoning. That’s why a burger should be thoroughly cooked all the way through.
So, this barbecue weekend, rain or shine, you are being reminded to:

• Cook burgers so they are steaming hot all the way through, no matter how good quality or expensive the meat
• Check that none of it is pink and that any juices run clear
• Avoid cross-contamination by storing raw meat separately before cooking, using different utensils, plates and chopping boards for raw and cooked food

Coun Neil Poole, Cabinet Member for Environment at North Lincolnshire Council, said: “It’s the little things like following this advice that can keep your loved ones safe. Children, elderly and poorly people in your family could get food poisoning, or even worse – a life threatening illness through serving a less than well-cooked burger at your barbecue this weekend. Enjoy your bank holiday weekend, but make sure you are safe.”
If you want a barbecue to be remembered for the right reasons, follow the FSA’s advice on cooking burgers at your barbecue. Find out more about the FSA’s top tips at: www.food.gov.uk/burgers   
Further information about food safety at barbecues can be found at: www.food.gov.uk/science/microbiology/how-to-barbecue-safely