Your potato salad has been out for how long? On this episode of The Valley Today, host Janet Michael welcomes back Amanda Johnson, the Food, Nutrition, and Health Extension Agent based in Frederick County (serving all five surrounding counties), for a genuinely useful summer companion to their November food safety conversation. This time the focus is picnics, cookouts, and family reunions — with the same four-pillar framework Amanda teaches: Clean, Separate, Cook, Chill.

Amanda walks through what most home cooks get wrong (yes, you need to wash the outside of a watermelon before you cut it; no, you can't tell doneness by looking at a hamburger; no, your macaroni and cheese is not "already cooked" and safe forever). She covers the current Cyclospora parasite situation in Virginia (fewer than 100 cases, potentially linked to leafy greens, and no — washing produce won't kill the parasite; only good hand hygiene stops the spread). She lays out the temperature danger zone (40°F to 140°F), the two-hour rule for food left out (which drops to one hour when it's 90°F or hotter outside), the proper internal temperatures for chicken, ground meat, and steaks, and the smart practical tips that make the whole thing manageable — from separate coolers for drinks and food, to smaller serving bowls that keep the reserve cold in the cooler, to why you should always reheat leftover mac and cheese to 135°F (Janet: "See, I told him"). Plus a Handwashing 101 refresher (20 seconds, out of the water, Happy Birthday twice or the ABCs will do it).

THE FOUR PILLARS OF FOOD SAFETY

1. CLEAN • Wash hands with soap for 20 seconds (out of the water), then rinse and dry • Wash all fresh produce under warm running water — including melon and squash exteriors • Sanitize prep surfaces and utensils • No soap needed on produce; just water and a bit of friction

2. SEPARATE • Never use the same plate for raw meat and cooked meat • Use different utensils at the grill for handling raw vs. cooked • Pack raw meat at the bottom of a cooler, sealed • Keep a separate cooler or bag for drink ice — never use the meltwater ice for beverages

3. COOK • Use a food thermometer — visual cues (grill marks, edges, color) are not reliable • Insert the thermometer from the SIDE of a burger, not top-down • Poultry: 165°F • Ground meat (hamburger, ground lamb): 160°F • Whole cuts (steaks, roasts): 145°F • Reheated leftovers: minimum 135°F

4. CHILL • The temperature danger zone: 40°F to 140°F • Hot foods should stay above 140°F while served • Cold foods should stay below 40°F while served • The two-hour rule: food out longer than 2 hours should be discarded • When it's 90°F or hotter outside, the rule drops to ONE hour • Crock-Pots can HOLD hot food but should NOT be used to reheat cold food

SMART PICNIC AND COOKOUT TIPS FROM THIS EPISODE

• Keep coolers in the shade

• Use SEPARATE coolers for drinks and food (drinks get opened way more often)

• Serve from a smaller bowl and refill from the cooler as needed — the reserve stays cold

• A bowl of ice under your potato salad extends its safe time on the table

• Cover food to keep bugs (and inconsistent hands) out

• Bring a food thermometer, always

• When you get home from a cookout, EVERYTHING gets reheated to 135°F before eating

CYCLOSPORA — WHAT TO KNOW RIGHT NOW

• Fewer than 100 confirmed cases in Virginia at time of recording • Transmitted through fecal contamination (water contact on produce is one route) • Washing produce does NOT kill the parasite — good handwashing is your best defense • Symptoms: diarrhea, can last weeks or months and can recur • Treatment: antibiotics and hydration • Suspected source under investigation, possibly leafy greens • Amanda's guidance: DO NOT stop eating fruits and vegetables — just be extra cautious with washing and hand hygiene

WHO IS AT HIGHEST RISK FROM FOODBORNE ILLNESS

• Elderly adults • Children under 5 • Pregnant women • People with autoimmune conditions or compromised immune systems • For these populations especially, all four pillars matter more.

LINKS & RESOURCES

• Virginia Cooperative Extension — Frederick County: contact your local Extension office for questions about food safety, nutrition, home food preservation, and health

• USDA food safety information: fsis.usda.gov

• Foodsafety.gov — federal food safety resource

• Amanda's earlier appearance on The Valley Today (November) — holiday food safety, thawing turkeys, and safe leftovers: https://thevalleytodaypodcast.com/turkey-talk-avoiding-foodborne-illness-this-thanksgiving

THE VALLEY TODAY with Janet Michael — A decade of conversations.

New podcast episodes drop weekdays at 11 AM. Catch the show on The River 95.3 and Fox Sports 1450 AM weekdays just after noon.

Subscribe and listen at thevalleytodaypodcast.com — available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts. If you enjoy the show, please take a moment to leave a rating or review — it helps more listeners find us.

Connect with us: Facebook — facebook.com/ValleyTodayFanPage Instagram — instagram.com/thevalleytoday