Food Safety

Question: I am a nurse on the abdominal transplant unit at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. The transplant patients on our unit are immunocompromised, and the committee I am working with are trying to give our patients a food safety magnet with the safe cooking temperatures for food. The USDA has a magnet like this, but they have been out of stock for quite some time. Do you have anything you give out to the community like a magnet with the safe cooking temperatures? Any information you may have would be greatly appreciated.

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied July 01, 2024, 1:24 PM EDT
response: Hi Kristin, I did not realize these were a hot commodity. Thank you for bringing this to my attention!  I reached out to Britanny Saunier, the Executive Director of the Partnership for Food Safety Education to inquire about when they might get some back in stock. I have also sent an email to my contacts at USDA (consumer food safety division) to see if there are plans to continue to offer these.  Some Extension groups have them (like Penn State Extension) but I assume Ohio State branded would be preferred.  Worst case scenario, maybe I can apply for a small grant to have some created. This is not the first request I have received.  I can follow up with you via email if that is ok.  -Nicole Arnold, Food Safety Field Specialist, Arnold<personal data hidden>

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied July 02, 2024, 4:45 PM EDT
response: Kristin, Do you have an idea of how many you would need?  I have some new information. Below was the response from my contacts at the USDA: "Yes! We’re actually waiting on a re-stock order to be fulfilled and hope to have a large stock available soon. We do not sell the magnets, we provide them free of charge to consumers and other entities (like a hospital) that will be giving them to consumers." -Nicole

responder: The Question Asker Replied July 10, 2024, 11:51 AM EDT
response: Hi Nicole! I am sorry I have not replied to your email sooner. I have been on vacation and did not have access to my email. Our unit had 44 new transplants in the month of June. If our average is around 40 transplants a month, the unit would need around 500 magnets for the year. I don't know if this is a reasonable amount or too many to ask for. Thank you so much for your help!!   Kristin   From: ask=<personal data hidden> <ask=<personal data hidden>> on behalf of Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> Sent: Tuesday, July 2, 2024 4:45 PM To: Coppel, Kristin <<personal data hidden>> Subject: Re: Food Safety (#0144713)

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied July 10, 2024, 12:10 PM EDT
response: No worries!  Thank you for the additional information. I have passed on the numbers to USDA and will follow-up once I have a response from them.  -Nicole

responder: The Question Asker Replied July 15, 2024, 3:07 PM EDT
response: Hi Nicole! We had our monthly education committee meeting today, and the committee was asking if there were any updates on the time frame from the USDA on when they will have the food temperature magnets available. We could also work with you to apply for a grant if you think that would be the better option.   Thank you, Kristin Coppel   From: ask=<personal data hidden> <ask=<personal data hidden>> on behalf of Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> Sent: Wednesday, July 10, 2024 12:10 PM To: Coppel, Kristin <<personal data hidden>> Subject: Re: Food Safety (#0144713)

responder: An Ask Extension Expert Replied July 16, 2024, 8:31 AM EDT
response: I have not yet heard back from USDA. I will shoot you an email (and pin it so it is in sight) and will reach back out when I hear from them. If I don't hear from them soon, I can follow-up. The most popular food safety conference is taking place right now; I assume they are attending.  -Nicole Arnold, Arnold<personal data hidden>