With recent power outages in the province from storms, the Saskatchewan Health Authority reminds everyone to take extra precautions to ensure the food in your fridge and freezer is safe after a prolonged outage.
For foods in your fridge, the advice from the SHA is that if potentially hazardous foods are above 4 degrees for more than 2 hours, they should be thrown out.
From the freezer, the frozen, partially thawed, or thawed foods that are still below 4 degrees can be prepared and consumed.
The SHA advises to throw out thawed vegetables, seafood, ice cream and frozen dinners because bacteria can multiply rapidly.
If partially thawed foods still have ice crystals, they can be safely refrozen, but it will reduce the quality, and if the food has any unusual colour or smell, throw it out.
A news release from the SHA cites the old adage, “When it doubt, throw it out.”
It is advised to document the type and amount of food and the reason for disposal so you have that information for your insurance company.
When it comes time to cleaning the fridge and freezer, the SHA suggests washing the interiors and racks with warm water and detergent, then sanitize everything by spraying on a solution of household bleach and water, with one tablespoon of bleach to six cups of water.
Let that stand for 45 seconds and then wipe dry with a clean cloth.
You can restock your fridge once it has reached 4 degrees and -18 degrees for your freezers.
The SHA cautions to not mix bleach with any other cleaning product.

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https://www.saskhealthauthority.ca/news-events/news/food-safety-following-power-outage-home