Enjoy a worry-free picnic with
these safety tips.

Here's how the basic steps to keeping food safe in the home -- clean, separate, cook, and chill -- also apply to safe outdoor eating.

Keep it clean: Clean your hands and surfaces often -- bring along moist towelettes or soap and water to do the job.

Separate: To avoid cross-contamination, tote plenty of plates and utensils along. Designate some for handling raw foods only and the others for handling cooked foods. Keep uncooked meats, poultry, fish, and shellfish separate from other foods -- transport in tightly sealed bags or containers and pack them at the bottom of the cooler so that juices from these foods do not drip onto other foods.

Cook properly: Use a food thermometer to make sure your foods are cooked to a safe internal temperature. Do not partially cook or grill food to finish cooking later.

Chill it: When toting foods, remember:

• Keep perishable foods at a temperature of 40 degrees F or below by packing them in a well-insulated cooler with plenty of ice or ice packs. A full cooler will maintain its cold temperature longer than a partially filled one. Thaw meat, poultry, fish, and shellfish in the refrigerator before taking it to a picnic. Wait until just before leaving home to pack perishable foods in the cooler.
• Take two insulated coolers: one for drinks, the other for perishable foods. That way warm air won't reach the perishables each time someone grabs a chilled beverage.
• On your way to the picnic, place coolers in the coolest part of your air-conditioned car rather than the trunk. At the picnic location, keep coolers tightly closed in a shady area and add ice often.
• Keep foods in the coolers until you need them; remove raw food only when you're ready to put it on the grill. (If grilling in batches, keep foods not being grilled in the cooler.)
• Discard any perishable food left outside for more than two hours (one hour if the temperature is above 80 degrees F).