Food Safety Worksheet

SCI/241 Version 7

Food Safety Worksheet

Jeffrey Eastman
SCI/241
February 28, 2015
Susie Connell

Copyright 2013 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved.

Food Safety Worksheet

SCI/241 Version 7

University of Phoenix Material

Food Safety Worksheet
Read each of the following scenarios.
Scenario 1:
Jeremiah went grocery shopping on a hot summer day. He bought food for an upcoming family BBQ;
ground beef for hamburgers, a couple of steaks, and the ingredients for making potato salad.
When he left the store, he put his groceries in the trunk and stopped by the sports outlet store to pick up a
Frisbee and croquet set. It took about 10 minutes at the sports store, and then Jeremiah headed home to
prepare the food. He was concerned that it had been too hot in the car, but everything was still cold when
he got home.
Jeremiah took the groceries home and put everything in the refrigerator. The meat fit well on the top shelf,
right above the potato salad ingredients.
Later on, he got the groceries out to prep everything for the BBQ. He cooked the potatoes and used a
sharp knife to trim some excess fat off of the raw steaks. Then he cut up the rest of the vegetables for the
potato salad with the sharp knife on a cutting board.
Jeremiah formed the hamburger patties, seasoned the steaks, and finished making the potato salad. With
only about 45 minutes to go before leaving for the BBQ, Jeremiah left everything sitting out on the counter
while he showered and got ready.
When he arrived at the BBQ, he set the potato salad on the picnic table and went to grill the steaks and
burgers. He cooked both to about medium doneness, meaning both were pink in the middle.
Jeremiah enjoyed one of the steaks he prepared and gave one to his cousin. The other family members
enjoyed the burgers and potato salad; in fact, Jeremiah didnt have a chance to try the salad. A couple of
days after the BBQ, Jeremiah learned that everyone at the BBQ, with exception of himself and his cousin,
experienced a bout of flu-like symptoms the following day.
Write 50- to 150-word responses to each of the following questions. Be clear and concise, use complete
sentences, and explain your answers using specific examples.
1. Based on Scenario 1, what are the possible sources of food-borne illness?
After reading the above scenario the possible reason for food borne illness is the presence of
microbes because of the improper storage of food. He left the food for 45 minutes on counter while he
was getting ready to go to BBQ. This is a sufficient amount of time for any bacteria to infect the food.

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Food Safety Worksheet

SCI/241 Version 7
2. Although Jeremiah did not get sick, there were several areas throughout Jeremiahs day that could
have led him to a serious case of food-borne illness. Point out these areas and briefly explain why
they are of concern and what Jeremiah could have done differently.
One of his first mistakes occurred when he left for the sports store and left the food in the car in high
temperature. At such high temperature pathogens could easily infect food. He should have taken the
food along with him or had it stored in a cooler. His second mistake occurred when he put the beef
over the vegetables in the refrigerator. If E-coli could be present in beef then it could have infected the
vegetables as well. The beef should have been covered properly before putting it in the fridge. His
third mistake was when he left the food on the counter when he went for shower. Another mistake he
made was not cooking the hamburger well done because it was still pink in the middle which means
that if there were any bacteria in the burger it would not have been completely killed. He should have
cooked it till it turned brown in the middle. This is something I never do unless I am cooking pork or
chicken.
3. Why is it safe for steak to be pink in the middle, but potentially dangerous for a hamburger not to be
cooked all the way through?
When steak is cooked to 160 degrees Fahrenheit and is pink it is safe. However if a hamburger is not
cooked all the way through then there might still be some bacteria left. The bacteria on the outer
surface may be removed but internally it could still be active and can infect the food which can cause
disease.
Scenario 2:
After enjoying a delicious dinner of lasagna, Martha cleaned up the kitchen and left the covered tray of
leftover lasagna on the counter to cool. Since the lasagna was so dense and thick, it took about 4 hours
for it to feel cool enough to go into the fridge for the night. The next day, Martha served leftover lasagna
for lunch. She heated the lasagna thoroughly and it was finished.
Within about 23 hours, everyone who ate the lasagna developed stomach cramps, fever, and nausea;
most eventually started vomiting. The illness was pretty awful, but thankfully relatively short-lived.
Write 50- to 150-word responses to each of the following questions. Be clear and concise, use complete
sentences, and explain your answers using specific examples.
1. How could this illness have been prevented?
This illness could have been prevented by not keeping the food on the counter for four hours. Four
hours is enough time for bacteria to multiply itself several times especially in danger temperature

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Food Safety Worksheet

SCI/241 Version 7
zone. If she had used a water bath or other method to cool down the food quicker and then put it in
refrigerator that would have been much safer. I have heard people just say to put it in the frigate
because it is better than leaving it on the counter to cool.
2. Based on the incubation period and symptoms of the illness, what is the most likely microorganism
responsible for this illness?
Based upon the length of time it sat on the counter to allow a lengthy incubation period and the stated
symptoms, the possible microorganism responsible for this illness could be Staphylococcus aureus,
since its onset time after consumption ranges from 2-8 hours. All of the symptoms; stomach cramps,
temperature, vomiting, and nausea also match the symptoms caused by this bacteria. It only impacts
the body for a day or two which is a short period of time.
3. Describe the temperature danger zone.
When talking about the Temperature danger zone they are referring to the range of temperature from
about 40 degree Fahrenheit to 135 degree Fahrenheit. In this range, the bacteria can grow and
multiply very rapidly and it can also be good growing conditions for bacterial toxins which can be very
harmful for the body. Once the temperature drops below the danger zone bacterial growth will stop
and if the temperature stays above the danger zone then bacterias will be eliminated.
4. How could Martha have sped up the cooling process of the lasagna?
Martha should have used a cooling bath or other method that would have cooled the lasagna quicker.
When talking about the cooling bath she could have put the food in its dish in a cold water bath. In
restaurants they have special tools that help them with this. Martha could have left the food out on the
counter for a shorter amount of time and then could put it in refrigerator or she could have just put it
directly in the refrigerator. The main goal is to limit the time the food stays in danger zone, so it
remains safe to consume.
5. If the leftover lasagna was thoroughly reheated, (which it was), how did it still lead to food-borne
illness?

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Food Safety Worksheet

SCI/241 Version 7
Usually once a food has been infected with bacteria it is very difficult to eliminate all of the pathogens
it contains. The recommended Temperature usually controls growth and at higher temperatures many
bacteria is eliminated but there is still a strong change that many bacteria can still survive. The higher
temperature may render it not to be as affective, but there is still a small chance. Even in high
temperature some growth can occur and as we know in life nothing is a %100.

Scenario 3:
Sally was making marinated shish-kabobs to grill for dinner. She made a beautiful marinade and then cut
up the raw chicken on a cutting board. She put the chunks of chicken in the marinade and let it sit on the
counter for about 3 hours until it was time to cook.
While the chicken was marinating, Sally prepared the vegetables. She cut them using the same cutting
board and knife; she rinsed both off with warm water between cutting the chicken and the vegetables.
Once the chicken had marinated, Sally put the chicken and vegetables on skewers to be grilled. She also
started rice in the rice cooker to go with the shish-kabobs.
As the shish-kabobs were grilling, Sally put the marinade in a serving dish for extra sauce to put over the
rice.
Several hours later, Sally and her family members all developed nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever,
headache, and abdominal pain.
Write 50- to 150-word responses to each of the following questions. Be clear and concise, use complete
sentences, and explain your answers using specific examples.
1. What could be the cause of Sally and her family members illness?
The first things that popped into mind when reading this scenario was the fact that she left the
chicken to marinade on the counter for three hours. The second thing that popped into my mind was
that she did not thoroughly disinfect the cutting board between uses. The fact that Sally left the raw
chicken in the marinade and let the marinade sit on counter for three hours allowed pathogens like
bacteria to infect the food. Since room temperature falls in the danger temperature zone, it allowed
rapid bacterial growth. Then she grilled the vegetables along with the bacteria infested chicken which
ensured the bacteria spread to the vegetables as well. Cutting the veggies on the rinsed cutting board
did not help either.
2. How could this illness have been prevented?

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Food Safety Worksheet

SCI/241 Version 7

The sickness could have been prevented by putting the chicken directly in the refrigerator to marinate
instead of leaving it on the counter for three hours. She should have also washed the cutting board
thoroughly between uses. In the refrigerator the temperature would be below danger temperature
which would have prevented bacterial growth and washing the cutting boards between uses would
have reduce cross contamination. Cooking the two together is not a bad idea, but the choices made
during the process were not the best ones.

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