Food Safety Hot Topics
Playing it safe with Easter eggs
MURFREESBORO, Ark. - If you plan to use decorated Easter eggs for display for
any length of time, follow one simple, safe rule: don’t eat them.
Once cooked, the egg should not be out of the refrigerator for more than two
hours. This rule is true for any protein-rich food. The temperature danger zone
for bacterial growth is 40 degrees to 140 degrees F. After two hours, there’s
enough time for bacteria to start producing and causing problems, including
Salmonella, if ingested.
A hard-cooked egg may be refrigerated and safe to eat for up to one week.
Any egg to be boiled should be placed in cold water. Let the water come to a
boil, and then lower it to a slow boil for 10 minutes. After cooking, put the
eggs in the refrigerator until ready to use. Boiling eggs removes the protective
coating applied by producers, making them more susceptible to bacteria, since
there are 15,000 to 17,000 pores on an egg’s surface.
When decorating, take only a few out of the refrigerator at a time. Decorate
and put them back into the refrigerator as soon as possible.
If you have boiled eggs and fresh eggs out at the same time, have you ever
forgotten which group was already boiled? You can tell if an egg is fresh or
cooked by spinning it on its side. A hard boiled egg will spin smoothly, while a
raw egg will wobble. If you want to peel a hard-cooked egg, cook your oldest
eggs rather than the freshest ones because it’s easier to remove the shell.
Safe handling instructions must be on cartons of eggs that have not been
treated to destroy Salmonella. These read: "To prevent illness from bacteria:
keep eggs refrigerated, cook eggs until yolks are firm and cook foods containing
eggs thoroughly." Eggs that have been treated to destroy Salmonella - by in-shell pasteurization, for example - are not
required to carry safe handling instructions.
Following these instructions is important for everyone but especially for
those most vulnerable to food-borne disease - children, the elderly, and persons
with weakened immune systems due to steroid use, conditions such as AIDS, cancer
or diabetes, or such treatments as chemotherapy for cancer or immune suppression
because of organ transplants.
Buy eggs only if sold from a refrigerator case. Open the carton and make sure
that the eggs are clean and the shells aren’t cracked. Refrigerate promptly
after purchase. Store eggs in their original carton and use them within 3-4
weeks for best quality.
Before preparing any food, remember that cleanliness is key! Wash hands,
utensils, equipment, and work surfaces with hot, soapy water before and after
they come in contact with eggs and egg-containing foods.
Thorough cooking is the most important step in making sure eggs are safe.
Cook eggs until both the yolk and the white are firm.
Egg cartons may be packed with a Julian date, the date the eggs were packed.
To read a Julian date which is usually on the short side of the carton, the
number represents the consecutive days of the year with the number 001 as
January 1 and December 31 as 365.
For more information on food safety, contact your county extension agent or
go to www.uaex.edu and select Health and Nutrition. The
Cooperative Extension Service is part of the U of A Division of Agriculture.
By Robbie McKinnon
Pike County Extension Agent
Media Contact: Lamar James
Extension Communications Specialist
U of A Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2187 or (501) 753-0207
ljames@uaex.edu
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