food safety and inspection service

Turducken. The name doesn’t sound appetizing, but once you cut into the triple layers of chicken, duck and turkey, you can see why people bypass the traditional Thanksgiving turkey for this all-in-one, mega-stuffed delicacy.

Last year, more than 46 million turkeys were carved and eaten at Thanksgiving. Turkey is typically accompanied by a host of side dishes and desserts, making the Thanksgiving meal by far one of the largest meals most people will cook this year.

Thanksgiving Day is full of family get-togethers, giving thanks, lots of food and some turkey deep frying horror stories. From homes burning down to turkeys skyrocketing into the air, safely preparing and frying a turkey doesn’t have to be dangerous. To avoid becoming one of these Thanksgiving Day horror stories, and to make sure you fry that centerpiece safely to avoid foodborne illness, USDA offers advice on properly preparing and frying your turkey safely.

“Trick-or-treating” or more recently “Trunk-or-Treating” is a Halloween custom for many American families. According to the US Census Bureau 2015 Population Estimates, there are an estimated 41.1 million potential trick-or-treaters – children ages 5 to 14 – across the United States. Of course, children younger than 5 years old and older than 14 (adults included) enjoy celebrating Halloween.

With work, school, sports practices, music lessons and homework time filling up the calendar, the back-to-school season can be hectic. During this busy time of year, having dinner waiting for you when you come home can make life so much easier. That’s why a lot of people choose to use slow cookers. No more standing in front of the refrigerator trying to make decisions about what to have for dinner after a long day at work. No more trying to balance food prep and homework. Just throw the ingredients in the slow cooker before work and turn it on!

Kibbeh is a Middle Eastern and North African dish traditionally prepared with a combination of red meat, usually beef or lamb, raw onion, cracked wheat, and spices. Although there are some versions of the dish that are baked or fried (such as Kibbeh raas, quipe, Kubba halab, or Kibbeh bil sinieh), others (like Kibbeh nayyeh) are prepared and served raw.

Fall is a great time to get outdoors — the weather is mild, and there are so many great activities to choose from: picnics in the park, hiking, apple picking and every sports fan’s favorite — tailgating. But even the most devoted fan could be sidelined with foodborne illness if they’re not careful with food preparation and storage. When planning your tailgate or other outdoor activity this fall, follow these food safety tips:

It’s September, which means the kids are back in school. They will be taught reading, writing and arithmetic, but there’s one lesson they might not be getting in the classroom – proper hand washing. This month, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue signed a proclamation (PDF, 346 KB) naming September National Food Safety Education Month. As part of that effort, USDA is encouraging parents, teachers and caregivers to help prevent the spread of foodborne illness (or food poisoning), by using proper handwashing techniques to avoid bringing germs from the playground to the dinner table.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced new updates to its popular FoodKeeper application that will provide users with new access to information on food safety recalls. The app has been updated so users can choose to receive automatic notifications when food safety recalls are announced by USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and the Department of Health and Human Service’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The United States food supply is one of the safest in the world; however, that doesn’t mean our food is free from all pathogenic bacteria. As we celebrate National Food Safety Education Month this September, the United States Department of Agriculture, along with our partners at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, want you to know that it is possible for your food to be almost completely safe from pathogenic bacteria by following the four basic steps to food safety.