The following is a media release from the Food Safety Information Council Ltd and is included here with permission.

The Food Safety Information Council today launched their back to school and work lunchbox food safety advice.

Council Chair, Rachelle Williams, said that preparing your own lunch is proving popular as Council research shows that 94 per cent of households with children pack school lunches and 4 out of five adults take packed lunches to work.

‘With the growing interest in cutting down on food waste taking leftovers for lunch is a great idea as it is cost effective and healthier than buying take away but we must remember that they can be a risky food and, if they need heating up, they need to be reheated to 75°C in the centre of the food,’ Ms Williams said.

‘With an estimated 4.1 million cases of food poisoning in Australia each year we need to be extra careful when taking food to lunch or school to make sure the food is handled safely to prevent bacteria from growing.’ Ms Williams concluded.

Here are 6 simple lunchbox food safety tips:

1. When buying lunchboxes choose ones that have room for a frozen drink or freezer block and are easy to clean and dry.
2. Always wash and dry your hands thoroughly before preparing food and wash all fruits and vegetables thoroughly.
3. Make sure lunchbox foods are always well separated from other foods in the refrigerator, particularly raw meats, chicken, eggs in their shells and fish.
4. Keep the lunch cool in the fridge until you are ready to leave home, put an ice brick in it and refrigerate as soon as you get to work (or in a cooler with ice bricks if you work outside). Discard any higher risk foods such as sushi, meat, poultry or eggs if not eaten that day.
5. Your child’s lunchbox will keep a safe temperature until lunchtime at school as long as it has a frozen drink or ice brick in it. During this hot weather you may want to consider providing safer lunchbox alternatives such as hard or processed cheese, canned tuna or sandwich spreads.
6. If your leftovers need reheating they must reach 75°C in the centre of the food so either use a meat thermometer to check or use the automatic reheat function in the work microwave and follow any prompts to stir the food or let it stand for a time after reheating.

The Food Safety Information Council would particularly like to thank Tonic Health Media for their support in getting our important food safety messages out to patients and their carers as they wait for GP appointments and other health services.

Media contact:

Lydia Buchtmann, Food Safety Information Council, 0407 626 688 or info@foodsafety.asn.au

Nanoparticles are now a common ingredient in many products, including sunscreen and, of course, food. Silver is recognised as having antimicrobial properties and is now beginning to appear not in food but it’s packaging. It is just one of the nanoparticles which are now in increasingly common use.

Other ingredients are also added to food to extend shelflife or to improve texture or to add flavour or to improve some other characteristic of the food.

So what has this all got to do with clean foods?

What is a clean food?

A clean food is as natural as possible, with minimal or no artificial ingredients or processes.

Why are clean foods important?

Most of the trend predictions for 2018, and beyond, have clean foods as one of the top expectations for consumers.

This means that more and more consumers are looking for foods which are seen to be “clean”.

The dilemma of this is that to maintain sales, manufacturers have now not only got to have food which is safe, with good shelflife, good quality, reducing allergens, made to minimise environmental impact, they now have to try to make a food which has no artificial ingredients or processes, whilst still trying to make a profit.

This is difficult, and is certainly stretching the Product Development departments. It is like trying to juggle multiple balls all at once and do other stuff at the same time – like manage staff and costs and marketing etc etc – and not dropping anything.

When it comes to clean foods, the real question is about what is articial and minimal?

As an example, there are some who thing that even though pasteurisation is required, we don’t need homogenisation of milk and this changes the food to no longer be clean. So sales of gourmet non homogenised milks are increasing. There is also  a belief that the heating used in traditional pasteurisation also changes the chemistry of the milk so there is pressure with the food industry to develop a method and equipment which will achieve the same level of food safety but without heating the milk. Ultrafiltration is just one of the methods being worked on.

Is adding silver nanoparticles, which will not cause us harm and is not artificial, Ok in a “clean food” because it will help the food safety and shelflife without using heat or is it not? Would that food be considered clean?

The other question is the marketing and labelling of “clean food” – how is it to be done legally?

The clean food movement cannot be considered a bad thing ,as it will drive food processors to do things in new and improved ways whilst no dropping any of the balls, but it is going to be hard.

Good or bad? Should you use them or not?

A UK restaurant has recently been fined 50 000 pounds for using wooden boards which were considered to be be very dirty and had not been washed thoroughly.

It is well known that wooden boards should not be used in food preparation within the food industry, and domestically and we see coloured plastic boards in use to address the contamination and cross contamination issues.

However there has been an increasing trend to use wooden boards, and other materials, for serving food.

It is now not unusual to see hamburgers and other food sitting on a wooden board on the tables in restaurants and cafes.

I know of a chain of restaurants which serves much of it’s food on materials other than china or plastic. The food presentation looks really good but there is so much more work required in the kitchen to keep them safe.

It looks good to be sure and gives the food a lot of appeal, but unfortunately there really is no difference with contamination and cross contamination issues between food being prepared on wooden boards and being served on them.

China and cermic are non porous and so are easy to clean and sanitise, wood is not and therefore should not be used in contact with wet foods. Dry foods like breads and crackers for presentation on wood are not an issue because there are no conditions to allow bacterial growth, but the problem is that food premises are now using the wooden boards for many other types of foods.

Wooden boards can be cleaned and sanitised but unfortunately it is time consuming and much more difficult than plastic boards or usual platewear. Cleaning requires that the pores in the wood be thoroughly cleaned and then ideally sanitation should involve heat to ensure that the foodborne pathogens are killed.

The real problem with wooden boards is moisture which allows bacterial growth, and ensuring that the pores in the wood are completely cleared of bacteria and food.

It is these problems which led to the UK food business being given such a hefty fine. With all food safety issues, the best solution is to eleiminate the problem rather than having to control it.

So the answer to the question is very simple – do not use wood and non food grade materials for either food preparation or serving. To do so means extra controls in place, which have to be followed to make them safe. To not use them at all, means it is one less food safety issue which needs to be managed.

Why make life more difficult than it needs to be?

It is the start of a new year and we have just finished a season of seafood, turkey and roast pork.

But will that always be the case?

Aussie love meat and especially red meat and chicken, and, at certain times of the year, seafood rules.

Animal meat is recognised as an environmentally expensive , due to the impact the animals have and the resources required to produce it, and is a comparatively low source of protein per kilogram of weight.

According to the Red Meat Advisory Council, the global average beef consumption is 57 g per day. It would definitely be higher in Australia, but across the world many countries are significantly lower than that.

So where are all these people getting their protein from?

For many it is from vegetable or cereal / grain sources, like soy, beans, peas and lentils, these are the staples of vegetarian and vegan diets, and are now being commonly chosen as a meat alternative by meat eaters.

Another alternative for vegos and those concerned with animal welfare is the cultured meat, which is now beginning to be heard of in news reports. There are obviously “manufactured meat” issues which will need to be handled before this type of protein becomes  in regular use.

In the USA a chip company already makes tortilla type chips from a flour made from specific crickets. These chips contain 30 percent less fat than normal chips and as much protein as an egg white per serving.

This company is not alone in using insects as an ingredient in food. Billions of people around the world eat insects regularly, although it is far less common in Western countries.

Yes, the future of commonly accessible and cheap protein is insects.There are more than 2000 species of edible insects, so it is a ready source of cheap protein, and has a high protein content for the weight consumed.

So in the future we will not only be considering purchasing and eating protein based on what species and where it came from but also on whether it is sourced from animal, vegetable, manufactured or insect.

So where does your meat come from?

Recently a friend came around and she she brought a packet of waffles with her for us to share. We were both  disgusted to see that each waffle was individually wrapped and then the four of them were placed into a plastic tray and then the filled tray was then placed in a plastic bag. There was simply more plastic than food – why??????

Another day recently, the same thing happened and there was a plastic bag of food pieces sitting inside a plastic tray, which was then all contained in the labelled plastic bag. Why did we need either the inner plastic bag or the tray?

Why did these manufacturers feel they had to have the 300g of food wrapped in three layers of plastic? The expense is one thing, but the environmental impact is nothing short of ridiculous.

This sort of packaging has to change.

There are not only the sheer expense of using such massive amount of unnecessary packaging and not meeting the National Packaging Covenant, which should be forcing food manufacturers to change, but consumers are  very concerned with the use of excess packaging. This is going to start affecting sales significantly.

According to Mintel, one of the world’s top market intelligence agencies, manufacturers are going to have to address this concern and do it quickly.

The top 5 packaging trends for 2018, which were recently released by Mintel, show that consumers want less packaging, but enough to keep the food safe and still reduce waste.

These same consumers also want to know what manufacturers are doing to reduce and recycle their packaging waste. So obviously the first step these companies have to take, is to not use three layers of plastic to package food.

Another trend is clean labelling – labels saying simply what is in in the food. This is complicated because manufacturers have to legally include specific information on the label, so this is going to be difficult.

So there will be significant packaging changes ahead and it can only be good news for all, including the environment.

The following is the Christmas media release from the Food Safety Information Council Ltd and is included here with permission.

The Food Safety Information Council, and Tonic Health Media, today launched their Christmas entertaining advice to urge consumers to buy a meat thermometer so they can avoid a bout of food poisoning this summer.

Council Chair, Rachelle Williams, said Christmas can be a recipe for disaster as we prepare fancy dishes we haven’t cooked before, overload our fridges in the heat and serve food to elderly, young and pregnant friends and relatives.

‘We know from our latest research that only 25% of Australian households own a meat thermometer and even fewer report using one in the previous month. You can’t tell if riskier foods like the Christmas turkey or rolled roasts are cooked to 75°C just by looking, you really need a meat thermometer.

‘If you already have a meat thermometer, rummage through that kitchen drawer and start to use it. If you don’t have one why not pick one up from your local home ware shop or hardware store while you are out Christmas shopping (and don’t forget a fridge thermometer too while you’re there). Thermometers don’t have to be expensive with some costing under $20 so they can make great presents too.

‘Then follow these simple food safety tips for Christmas and Summer entertaining:

1. Plan ahead and don’t buy too much food that you can’t fit into your fridge. Overstocking your fridge can affect the temperature and this will help to reduce food waste too.
2. Make room in your fridge by removing alcohol and soft drinks and put them on ice in a container or laundry sink. This also stops guests opening the fridge and helps to maintain the temperature at 5°C or below. Use a fridge thermometer to check the temperature.
3. Think about getting a turkey breast or a turkey buffé that is simpler to cook than a whole turkey. If you do need a whole turkey ask your supplier if they can defrost it in their cool room ready for you to pick up. Otherwise it must be defrosted in your fridge which can take several days.
4. Don’t wash any poultry before cooking as that will spread the bacteria around your kitchen. Cook the turkey until a meat thermometer shows it has reached 75° C in the thickest part of the thigh and cook any stuffing separately as it might not fully cook inside a whole turkey.
5. Cooked egg dishes are simple and nutritious but try to avoid raw or minimally cooked egg dishes, such as raw egg mayonnaise or aioli, egg nog or fancy desserts, which can be a particular risk for food poisoning
6. Christmas ham won’t last forever – check the storage instructions and best before or use by date before removing the ham from its plastic wrap, cover it with clean cloth soaked in water and vinegar so it doesn’t dry out, and store it in the fridge below 5°C. It is important to remember that the use by date on the original packaging won’t apply after the packaging has been removed, so check the fine print and see if the ham has a suggested shelf life after opening. Reduced salt hams are now becoming popular but will not last as long as conventional hams so think how much you are going to use in the next week or so and freeze some for later.
7. Don’t leave dips and other perishable chilled foods like patés, cold meats, cold poultry, sushi and salads out for more than two hours. Put out small amounts and replace (not top them up) from the fridge.
8. Refrigerate leftovers as soon as possible. If perishable foods and leftovers have been left out of the fridge for less than two hours they should be okay to refrigerate or freeze to eat later, but food that has been unrefrigerated for more than four hours may not be be safe and should be thrown Always reheat leftovers to 75°C in the centre of the item or the thickest part to kill any food poisoning bugs.
9. Don’t forget the most important message of all, is to wash your hands in warm soapy water before preparing and cooking food, and after handling eggs, raw meat, particularly poultry, burgers and sausages.

The Food Safety Information Council would particularly like to thank Tonic Health Media for their support. They are Australia’s largest health and wellness network and will be broadcast our important food safety messages  in 4500+ GP practices, hospitals, pharmacies and health centre waiting areas across the country to an an audience of 14 million+ per month see their website for more info.
Media contact:

Lydia Buchtmann, Food Safety Information Council, 0407 626 688 or info@foodsafety.asn.au

The Food Safety Information Council is a health promotion charity which aims to address the estimated 4.1 million cases of food poisoning in Australia each year that result in 31,920 hospitalisations, 86 deaths and 1 million visits to doctors.

Around the world each year some 1.6 gigatonnes of food is wasted. This occurs from the farm to the fridge and 1.3 gigatonnes is still suitable for eating when it is dumped.This is one third of all the food produced.

If you work out how much this costs in terms of money, water, work and other consumables, it is a much bigger waste than just the food itself.

We have stop wasting food and we have to find ways of converting what is wasted into usable materials to reduce the massive amonts of resources which we are currently just throwing away each day.

CSIRO is busy working on this and has developed a new method to convert what is called bio-mass into usable materials which can then be re4used in the food supply.

It has been done using apples as the trial food, as two thirds of all the apples grown do not meet the supermarket requiremenst and are wasted.

Much of this is pulped after the fruit is used for juicing, which is still edible but looks very unappealing.

The new CSIRO process stops the pulp from degrading, so it keeps it’s flavour and nutrients. It is believed that the same process can be used on other fruits and vegetables, like; grapes, tomatoes and carrots.

 

The pulp can be converted into many usable forms, like powders, pellets or paste, which can then be used as ingredients in food products.

With seafood being such a key part of an Australia Christmas, it is a good time to think about seafood and food illness – particularly from toxins.

The following is a fact sheet from http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/consumer/safety/foodborne-illness/Pages/Toxins-in-seafood.aspx and is included here with permission.

Toxins in seafood

What toxins can be associated with seafood?

• Amnesic shellfish toxin
• Diarrhoetic shellfish toxin
• Neurotoxic shellfish toxin
• Paralytic shellfish toxin
• Ciguatoxins
• Histamine

What illness does it cause?

• Amnesic shellfish poisoning, diarrhoetic shellfish poisoning, neurotoxic shellfish poisoning and paralytic shellfish poisoning are caused by the respective shellfish toxins listed above
• Ciguatera (or ciguatera fish poisoning) is caused by ciguatoxins
• Scombroid fish poisoning is caused by histamine

None of these illnesses are nationally notifiable and don’t need to be reported to health authorities unless there is an outbreak.

What are the symptoms?

Amnesic shellfish poisoning

Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhoea, headaches, confusion and seizures and usually begin within one or two days of eating toxic shellfish.

The illness can be severe and cause coma and death

Diarrhoetic shellfish poisoning

Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhoea and headache and start within 30 minutes to 15 hours of eating toxic shellfish.

The illness usually lasts up to three days.

Neurotoxic shellfish poisoning

Symptoms include numbness and tingling of lips, fingers and toes, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

The illness usually only lasts a few days.

Paralytic shellfish poisoning

Symptoms are similar to neurotoxic shellfish poisoning (see above) but more severe and begin half an hour to two hours after eating toxic shellfish.

The illness can be serious and cause paralysis, respiratory problems and death.

Ciguatera fish poisoning

Symptoms include tingling and numbness in fingers, toes and face; burning sensation or pain on contact with cold water; joint and muscle pains and weakness; nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, headache, fatigue and fainting. In severe cases, respiratory problems and paralysis can occur. Symptoms start between 1 and 48 hours after eating toxic fish.

Gastrointestinal symptoms usually last a few days but neurological symptoms may last several weeks or months

Scombroid fish poisoning

Symptoms include a peppery or metallic taste, flushing of the upper body, itching, headache, dizziness, vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal cramps and start 30 minutes to a few hours after eating toxic fish and last a day or two. In severe cases, people can have difficulty breathing and low blood pressure.

Who can get sick?

Anyone who eats contaminated fish or shellfish.

Where do these toxins come from?

The four shellfish toxins listed are produced by certain marine algae. These toxins can build up in shellfish as they feed on the algae, especially during algal blooms (or ‘red tides’). Common shellfish that can be contaminated with these toxins include clams, oysters, mussels, scallops and crabs.

Ciguatoxins come from marine algae that are eaten by fish in and around coral reefs. These toxins build up and become more potent in the bigger fish that feed on contaminated smaller ones. Fish that can contain ciguatoxins include Chinaman fish, red bass, some wrasse, tropical snappers and coral trout.

Histamine is produced by bacteria in particular types of fish (usually in the Scombridae and Scomberesocidae families). When these fish are not properly chilled (straight after capture or in storage before eating) the bacteria can grow and produce high amounts of histamine. Fish that can contain histamine include mackerel, tuna, sardines, anchovy and marlin.

How can people get sick?

• By eating contaminated fish and shellfish
• By eating fish that have not been properly chilled
• Cooking or freezing seafood will not remove the toxins

How can illness be prevented?

• Buy seafood from a trusted supplier
• Keep seafood cold (5°C or colder) — refrigerate immediately after buying it; if its frozen, thaw it in the fridge; and if you catch your own fish, chill it on ice immediately
• Avoid eating large fish from warm ocean waters, especially the head, roe or organs
• If harvesting shellfish or reef fish yourself, check with local authorities which species and waters are safe for harvesting

The following are current recalls in Australia and the information is included here with permission from Food Standards Australia New Zealand

Warburn Estate Bottled Wine

• 2017 Rumours Semillon Sauvignon Blanc
• 2017 Rumours Pinot Grigio
• 2017 Rumours Chardonnay
• 2017 Rumours Sauvignon Blanc
• 2017 Rumours Moscato
• 2017 Gossips Chardonnay
• 2017 Gossips Semillon Sauvignon Blanc
• 2017 Gossips Moscato
• 2017 Gossips Pink Moscato
• 2017 Gossips Dolcetto and Syrah
• 2017 Gossips Sauvignon Blanc
• 2017 Wine Gang Sauvignon Blanc
• 2017 Warburn Estate Sangiovese Rose

Individual bottles are 750ml (0.75kg) and cartons of 6 bottles are 4.5kg

Lot numbers: L17289 to L17328, for Gossips Moscato only: L17289 to L17327

Warburn Estate is conducting a recall of the above products. The products have been available for sale at BWS, Dan Murphy’s, independent liquor stores and hotels nationwide.

Problem: The recall is due to a packaging fault resulting in the presence of glass.

Food safety hazard: Food products containing glass may cause injury if consumed.

What to do: Consumers should not drink this product and should return the products to the place of purchase for a full refund.

Country of Origin: Australia

For further information please contact:

Warburn Estate, (02) 6963 8367 between the hours of 8:30am and 5:00pm, outside of this a message can be left

www.warburnestate.com.au

 

‘Berg Smallgoods’

American Style Skinless Hot Dogs 375g

All date codes up to and including 28/01/18 Use By Date

ALDI takes product safety and quality very seriously, and wishes to advise customers of a recall of the above product. The product has been available for sale at all ALDI stores throughout Australia.

Problem: The recall is due to potential microbial contamination and the presence of bone fragments.

Food Safety Hazard: Food products contaminated with microbial pathogens may cause illness if consumed. Food products containing foreign objects may cause injury if consumed.

What to do: Consumers should not eat this product. Any consumers concerned about their health should seek medical advice. Customers should return the product(s) to their nearest ALDI Store for a full refund. ALDI Stores apologies for any inconvenience caused.

Country of Origin: Australia

For further information please contact: ALDI Food Recall Hotline on 1800 709 993

The following is from the Food safety in emergencies page on the Food Safety Information Council’s website and is include here with permission. It is only one of the many excellent pieces of food safety advice for consumers which can be found at http://foodsafety.asn.au

Floods, fires and storms can leave you without electricity for your fridge, gas for cooking and water for cleaning and also expose your food to contaminants. Be prepared with this emergency food safety advice.

Plan ahead

Where possible prepare by having food on hand that doesn’t need refrigeration or heating. Foods with a long shelf life such as long life milk, bottled water or boiled water in a clean, sealed container and canned or dried goods should be part of an emergency food supply. Keep a manual can opener handy as well as a meat and fridge thermometer available to check temperatures.

If needed ensure there will be enough ready-to-use formula for infants and food for pets. If items have a use-by date, make sure you replace them periodically to keep them within these dates. See also The Pantry List for essential items you need to prestock.

Have a BBQ with a good supply of heat beads or bottled gas available for cooking.

In areas that could be affected by a flood, plan to store food well above floodwater levels.

Have coolers available and ice bricks or gel packs ready frozen to keep food cold if the power will be out.

Keep it clean! It’s critical to practice basic hygiene

Wash and dry your hands thoroughly with soap using clean, drinking-quality water see how. Do this before preparing food or eating, after toilet use, after clean-up activities and after handling articles that might be contaminated with dangerous chemicals, floodwater or sewage. Use alcohol-based hand sanitiser to wash hands if the supply of drinking-quality water is limited.

When the power goes off

Modern refrigeration systems maintain food at safe temperatures. This helps reduce the growth of bacteria on your food which can lead to food poisoning. When there is a power outage you need to take extra measures to reduce the risk of food-related illness.

It is important to record the time the power went off. When a power cut is ongoing (that is, it lasts for more than 4 hours and there is no immediate likelihood of reconnection) food safety becomes an important issue.

Unless cold storage is available within 2 hours of a power cut, all potentially hazardous foods such as meat, poultry, seafood and ready-to-eat perishable food) that are stored in refrigerators or chillers need to be:

placed in alternative cold storage, for example coolers with ice or ice bricks, or into the fridges of family and friend’s

eaten immediately

if you have a fridge thermometer and have recorded the time the power went off, eaten immediately or thrown away if the temperature rises to above 5 degrees for over 2 hours

if you don’t have a fridge thermometer and another cold storage area is not immediately available after 2 hours.

Time and temperature are the most important measurements used to determine whether food needs to be regarded as potentially unsafe.

The ‘4 hour/2 hour rule’ for safe storage of food

The following actions are recommended for any potentially hazardous food that has been at temperatures between 5 °C and 60 °C for a total of:

less than 2 hours – refrigerate or use immediately

longer than 2 hours but less than 4 hours – use immediately

4 hours or longer – must be thrown out.

Make a note of the time the power went off. If available, use a watch and a thermometer to follow these time and temperature recommendations. Eat perishable foods first and save the dried and canned food until last.

The advice offered here refers to any or all potentially hazardous food except those normally kept at room temperature or jams, pickles and other acid foods.

Important note: If you are unsure about the time that has passed or the temperature your food has been stored at then throwing the food out is the safest option.

Planned power cuts

The day or night before power is cut off, prepare in advance to store your food safely:

If possible, try to organise alternative refrigerated storage in advance, for example with relatives, friends or neighbours.

Avoid buying food that needs to be frozen or refrigerated until after the power is restored

Adjust the refrigerator to its coldest setting and remove fresh fruit and vegetables to prevent them being damaged. These items can be stored at room temperature

Set your freezer to its coldest setting

Place ice bricks, or freeze large blocks of ice, in the freezer for later use

If you can, freeze some of the items from your fridge for later use. This is a very safe option and is best done well before the power cut

Sudden or unplanned power cuts

A sudden or unplanned power cut will not allow much time for you to safely store your foods. Your food will remain safe in your refrigerator for 2 hours, but there are some steps you can take:

If you have sufficient space in the freezer, after 2 hours you should remove foods from the fridge. Place them in the freezer or esky with ice bricks.

Do not open the freezer door unless necessary, as this will reduce the time the contents will remain frozen.

If your freezer is efficient, and its door seals are in good condition, it can maintain foods in a frozen state for between 1 and 2 and a half days.

Relatives, friends or neighbours may be able to provide alternative storage.

 

During power cuts

Food stored in refrigerators

Your food will remain safe in your refrigerator for 2 hours. If it has been more than 4 hours, throw the food out. Don’t open the fridge door during the power cut, unless necessary.

The best option is to keep the refrigerated foods as cold as possible by not opening the door unless necessary to remove food to eat or check the temperature after 2 hours. or place items in the freezer. If this is not possible:

Remove ice bricks from the freezer and place in an esky.

Remove all meats, poultry, dairy and potentially hazardous food (for example dips, pâté, ham, prepared and cooked food) from the refrigerator and place in an cooler with frozen bricks or gel packs.

Salted butter, margarine and hard cheeses will remain safe at room temperature.

Place the ice or ice bricks throughout the stored food to ensure an even temperature. Make sure the lid of the cooler has a good seal.

If the temperature of the food stored in an cooler or refrigerator reaches more than 5 °C for less than 2 hours you should find alternative refrigeration at less than 5 °C or, if possible, freeze or use immediately.

Food stored in a refrigerator or esky at more than 5 °C for 4 hours or more should be thrown out.

Food stored in freezers

Freezers that are in good condition and operate at minus 15 °C or below can keep foods at safe temperatures for between 1 and 2 days. If the freezer door is kept shut, a full freezer can keep food chilled for up to 48 hours, while a half full freezer can be kept food chilled for 24 hours.

It is important that the doors of freezers are not opened unless necessary. Opening and closing the doors will reduce the time the contents will remain at safe temperatures.

Foods that have partly defrosted or defrosted but remain very cold (5 °C or less) can be refrozen.  Remember that some food types, for example ice cream which will thaw other foods defrost. Although there is no safety issue, some foods become icy or their texture will be damaged when refrozen and may not be usable after defrosting and refreezing.

Note that while there will not be a food safety issue in refreezing defrosted foods, the quality of the food may be slighted deteriorated. You have 2 options for food that has been stored in a freezer where the temperature has reached more than 5 °C for up to 2 hours:

Find alternative refrigeration at less than 5 °C or refreeze

Consume immediately.

If your food has been in a freezer where the temperature has reached more than 5 °C for more than 2 hours, but less than 4 hours, it should be consumed immediately.

Food stored in a freezer for more than 4 hours at more than 5 °C should be thrown out.

Food in the process of being cooked

Throw out food that was being cooked when the power failed if cooking cannot be completed properly within 2 hours. If food is already properly cooked, eat it within 2 hours or throw it out.