|  |  | **Food Safety and Inspection    Service    United States Department of Agriculture    Washington, D.C. 20250-3700** |
|--|--|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

##### Consumer Information

##### Volume 4, No. 1 1999

## The Food Safety Educator

Your consumer connection*Listeria:*Public Health Strategies
**A**s a result of foodborne illness outbreaks traced to *Listeriamonocytogenes*linked to lunch meats and hot dogs, the Food Safety and InspectionService (FSIS), is working with industry and the public to reconsider approaches tocontrolling the pathogen.

    At a public meeting convened by FSIS in February 1999, CatherineWoteki, U. S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Food Safety, reinforced that"we need to look at all our options" in developing new public health strategies.(Check the FSIS web site for updates: www.fsis.usda.gov)

    During the public meeting, FSIS officials emphasized the importanceof reaching people at risk with safe food handling information concerning *Listeriamonocytogenes*. Public health officials also stressed the importance of warningconsumers not to eat food products that have been recalled.

    *Listeria monocytogenes*is found widely in the environment andcan contaminate a variety of foods. It can be found in uncooked meats and vegetables aswell as cooked foods that can become contaminated after processing, such as soft cheesesand lunch meats.

    When people eat food contaminated with *Listeria monocytogenes*,they can become sick with an illness called listeriosis, an uncommon but potentially fataldisease. Less than 2,000 cases of serious illness from listeriosis are reported each year.But, of those reported cases, nearly 25 percent die as a result of the illness.

    While most people don’t get sick from *Listeria monocytogenes*,some people are more at risk. These people are more likely to get sick from bacteria infood and suffer serious health problems as a result.

**    People at risk include: pregnant women and newborns, olderadults, and people with immune systems that are weakened**as a result of a number ofcauses, including chronic illnesses like diabetes, kidney disease and AIDS.

    Listeriosis causes flu-like symptoms, such as fever and chills.Sometimes people have an upset stomach, but not always. It can take up to 8 weeks for aperson to become sick after eating a food contaminated with *Listeria monocytogenes.*

    While infected pregnant women may experience only mild, flu-likesymptoms, the mother’s illness can be transmitted to the fetus, causing seriousillness, spontaneous abortion or stillbirth. A blood test or spinal fluid test can be usedto confirm a diagnosis of illness from *Listeria monocytogenes*, and the illness canbe treated with antibiotics.

**    People at risk for listeriosis should:**- Reheat ready-to-eat foods  such as hot dogs, luncheon meats, cold cuts,    fermented and dry sausage, and other deli-style meat and poultry products until they are    steaming hot. If you cannot reheat these foods, don’t eat them. 
- Do not drink raw, unpasteurized milk  or eat foods made from it. 
- Do not eat soft cheeses  such as feta, Brie, Camembert, or blue-veined    varieties. 

    FSIS is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Preventionas well as state and local health departments to identify sources of contamination andprevention techniques. At the same time, the agency is teaming with the Food and DrugAdministration on a risk assessment concerning the pathogen due to be completed in thefall of 1999.

    For more information, check: www.foodsafety.gov  
 Teaming Educators and Communities
**A**nother food safety education project has shown that teaming educators withcommunities can produce dramatic results.

    Every community has people it relies on as leaders. They may beelected leaders, religious leaders or simply every-day people others turn to for guidance.These people can be the key to successful education campaigns.

    That’s what happened in Yakima, Washington. 

    In the summer of 1997, Dr. Val Hillers, an extension food specialistat Washington State University, attended the first national conference for food safetyeducators in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Food Safety and Inspection Service and theFood and Drug Administration.

    During one of the presentations, Dr. Anne Peterson of Georgia spokeof outbreaks of *yersinia*in Georgia that had been traced to chitterlings. 

    The outbreaks were causing severe illness in children. Looking forhelp in stemming the outbreaks, Peterson turned to the African-American community. Withtheir help, Peterson discovered cooks in the community who were using a safer process forfixing chitterlings. Peterson turned to the community again. She used community networksand leaders, including churches and ministers, to help educate others about the new, saferpreparation method. The result? Outbreaks declined.

    As Hillers listened to Peterson speak, she says, "I wondered ifthat approach could work for us."

**    Like Peterson, Hillers faced an outbreak taking its toll onchildren.**

    Between 1992 and 1997 in Yakima County, Washington, illnesses from *Salmonella*Typhimurium increased dramatically. In the first half of 1997, 89 people, primarilychildren, became ill from the pathogen. Investigators for the Centers for Disease Controland Prevention (CDC) linked the illnesses to the consumption of locally made raw-milkcheese, queso fresco.

    Nearly one-quarter of the county’s population is made up ofMexican-Americans and queso fresco is a favorite traditional food.

    No sooner had Hillers returned from the conference in Washington,D.C., than she learned that both the state health department and CDC were urging animmediate intervention to try to stem the outbreak. 

    Peterson’s project, Hillers says,"planted the seed. This is how you are successful--you are respectful of thecommunity you are trying to reach."

    Hillers worked with Theo Thomas, an extension educator at WashingtonState University. Together, they assembled a working group of university students andextension agents. Then they turned to the Hispanic community looking for a solution. Andthey found one. 

    "One of the women we were meeting with told us her mother had arecipe for queso fresco made with pasteurized milk," Hillers recalls. 

    The recipe was modified by dairy product researchers at theuniversity. Graduate student Ryan Bell helped transform the recipe into a full-blowneducational campaign that relied on the Spanish-speaking community for its success.Abuelas, which is the Spanish word for grandmothers, were the teachers. The Abuela Projectwas born.

    Using funds from the Washington State Dairy Projects Commission, theAbuela Project trained 15 Hispanic grandmothers, who in turn trained others in theircommunity.

    Each abuela was provided with a demonstration kit worth about $65which included a thermometer, stock pot and Spanish and English flyers containing the newrecipe using pasteurized milk.

    The abuelas were asked to train at least 15 other people. Eachgrandmother did that and some did much more. In all, the grandmothers trained more than250 people. 

    The results were impressive.

    **Rates of illness dropped dramatically. Within 6 months, the ratedropped to pre-outbreak levels.**In 1998, not a single case was linked to consumptionof soft cheese. 

    In late 1998, Thomas and Hillers obtained additional funding fromUSDA and trained an additional 30 grandmothers. These abuelas will be training othersthroughout this year. By the end of 1999, Hillers expects the program will reach sevencounties in the state.

    Hillers and Thomas also expect to target new training to smallunlicensed vendors of fresh cheese and assist them in the licensing process.

    For a copy of the recipe flyer in Spanish or English, or moreinformation on the project, contact:

Dr. Val HillersFSHN 106 L, WSUP.O. Box 646367Pullman, WA 99164-6376phone: 509/335-2970
When "Short and Sweet" Comes Up Short
**O**ne of the basic tenets of effective communications in the1990’s has been keep it "short and sweet."

    But as Katherine Rowan, professor of communication at PurdueUniversity notes, consider this statement: the earth is weightless. 

    "That’s a short statement. There are no big words there.But the concept is hard to understand. It runs counter to our intuition," sheexplains.

    That "intuition" is the basis of something Rowan terms"lay theories," the personal explanations people have for how the world works.Sometimes lay theories are correct, even though they may be based on intuition. Butsometimes they are not. 

    Scientists who are trying to communicate ideas that run counter topeople’s lay theories will find, she says, that these inaccurate ideas get in theway.

    To deal with lay theories, communicators need to go beyond"short and sweet. Sometimes, more words are needed to explain complex ideas,"she says.

    Rowan applied her ideas about lay theories to food safety during arecent presentation to the Washington D.C. Chapter of Agricultural Communicators inEducation.

    As Rowan pointed out, sometimes a person’s personal theoriesabout food conflict with the science of food and food safety. 

    In order to communicate effectively, Rowan says, educators need torecognize the lay theories that may be blocking communications.
**    **Rowan notes several properties of lay theories:**- They are "tacit," hard to explain.
- People don’t want to let go of them--they are "obdurate."
- They are intuited.
- They are a guide to behavior.

**    In order to overcome lay theories, Rowan advises:**- State the consumers’ lay theory back to them.
- Acknowledge its apparent plausibility.
- Create dissatisfaction with it. 
- Offer support for a new view.
- Illustrate with familiar examples.

    Rowan points out that good communicators frequently understandintuitively that they are dealing with lay theories--and seek to defuse them. 

    To understand the lay theories you are dealing with, Rowan suggeststhat educators tap their own knowledge as well as the knowledge of others. Rich sources ofdata, she points out, may be people who routinely field consumers’ questions, likethe experts on the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline. "You can hear in the things theysay to consumers that they are instinctively dealing with lay theories," she says.

    For more information, contact:

Katherine E. RowanDepartment of Communication1366 LAEB 2114Purdue UniversityWest Lafayette, IN 47907-1366email: [email protected]phone: 765/494-3325
Countering a Food Safety    "Lay Theory"
Excerpted from materials by Katherine E. Rowan***"I grew up with my mother cooking the turkey overnight at low temperatures    and no one got sick. So why can’t I do that in 1998?"****State the lay view and acknowledge its apparent plausibility: You may be right that    no one got sick. People adjust to levels of pathogens over time, so if the cook followed    the same practices repeatedly, family members may have acclimated.
**Create dissatisfaction with the lay view. On the other hand, sometimes we    don’t remember, or even know, when people get sick. Guests might become ill and the    family may never know. Or, people may think they had a "bug," when in fact it    was food poisoning. Dangerous pathogens in food can make people sick days--or even    weeks--after eating. Sometimes people just don’t make the connection.
**State the scientifically supported view and illustrate with familiar examples. When    food is kept at low temperatures, known as the "danger zone," bacteria double    every 20 minutes. A turkey cooked overnight at low temperatures may make food warm enough    to promote the growth of bacteria, but not hot enough to stop bacterial growth, or kill    the bacteria that are present. Why take the chance? When Warnings Don't Work
**D**espite a flurry of media reports concerning a 1994 recallof *Salmonella*-contaminated ice cream, a newly published study shows that manypeople who had heard about the recall ate the ice cream anyway.

    In fact, 16 percent of all the reported illnesses in the study areaoccurred after the warnings were issued.

    According to the study’s authors writing in the January 1999issue of *The American Journal of Public Health*(Vol. 89, No. 1),**"Thewarning was neither as timely or as convincing as we would have hoped.... Many customersmisunderstood or were skeptical of the warning."

    The study showed that only 6 percent of the news reports includedthe fact that the recalled food should not be eaten. Instead, news stories focuses on theill people and the investigation into the source of the contamination.

    The study on the effectiveness of warnings on recalled food wasconducted in Georgia by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

    In the 1994 outbreak, it was estimated that more than 224,000 peoplenationwide became sick as a result of *Salmonella*-contaminated ice cream; anestimated 11,000 people in Georgia became ill.

    CDC studied the effectiveness of the recall warnings through atelephone survey of 250 randomly selected Georgia customers of the recalled product.

    The results?

    After first hearing the warning, 36 percent of the respondents didnot understand that the recalled ice cream should not be eaten.

    In 31 percent of the households who had the product and heard thewarning, someone ate the ice cream anyway. Twenty-six percent of the people who ate theice cream became sick with diarrhea.

    "The media, especially TV, get the word out quickly, but maynot focus on the public health message," the authors noted.

    The authors added that they don’t know if public healthofficials may have missed opportunities in press interviews to emphasize that consumersshould not eat the recalled food.

    "Our investigation," the authors concluded,"highlights the need for further research on methods for delivering effectivewarnings."
Check the Web for Recall Info:
Don’t forget to check the web for recall information. The latest information on    meat and poultry recalls is available through the FSIS web site at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/news/xrecalls.htm

Click on the "recall notification reports," and click again on the    accompanying report number. For each recall, the site provides:- Info on product recalled by brand names, producers and identifying codes.
- The problem or reason for the recall.
- How/when discovered.
- The federal establishment.
- The corporate contact.
- FSIS contacts, including emergency response, media inquiries, Congress and consumer        calls.

For information on FDA recalls, go to http://www.fda.gov/po/enforceindex/99enforce.htmlThe Gateway to Government Food Safety Information
**I**f you haven’t done this lately, log on to **www.foodsafety.gov**

    You’ll find a new and much improved federal site that providesinformation on hot topics in food safety, links to key sites inside and outside ofgovernment and a search engine and index.

    Whether you’re a food safety educator, student, consumer,industry rep or a kid, you’ll find something of interest at this great gateway site,including: - News and safety alerts
- Consumer advice
- Other federal and state agencies involved in food safety
- How to report illness and product complaints
- Industry assistance
- Facts on foodborne pathogens
- Educational materials for kids, teens and educators, including links to materials    produced by state and local governments.
Cooked to the "T"
**F**ood will be cooked to the **"T"--temperaturethat is.** If food safety educators have their way, consumers will be using foodthermometers to check the food they prepare.

    While some consumers may scoff at the idea of using foodthermometers for everyday meals, educators are just gearing up to show consumers how theycan improve food quality as well as safety by using a food thermometer.

    To lay the ground work for a thermometer campaign, the Food Safetyand Inspection Service (FSIS) held a briefing for thermometer industry representativeslate in 1998. 

    Catherine Woteki, USDA Under Secretary for Food Safety, encouragedthermometer industry representatives to work with food safety educators in the campaign toexpand use of thermometers in the home.

    "The need is so evident," she said. "Thermometer useis the most reliable method consumers have for ensuring that foods have reached atemperature sufficient to destroy pathogens."

    "We have our work cut out for us," Woteki said. She notedthat focus group testing with consumers shows that people have many objections to usingfood thermometers. But the focus group testing also found that change is possible.

    One key to effecting that change is stressing that consumers canimprove the quality of their food, as well as the safety, by using a food thermometer.Those two messages will be central to a campaign to be launched by FSIS later this year.

    In the meantime, the FSIS thermometer industry briefing has createdmomentum. Thermometer industry representatives are studying ways to support food safetyeducation and make sure that their products and packaging are "consumerfriendly." 

    Building on the campaign launched last year by Wegmans, two moregrocery store chains, Giant Food Inc. and Copps, have launched thermometer campaigns andothers are exploring how they can promote the use of food thermometers.

    Interested in more information? Contact Holly McPeak at202/720-5836, or email: [email protected]
Arkansas' Food Safety Program for Kids
**T**hey look like a pair of plain, white gloves, withhand-sewn eyes and smiling mouths--but anyone with a little imagination would know theyare a lot more than that. They are "Squeaky and Clean, the Handwashing Team."

    These hand puppets are now in Arkansas schools teaching youngchildren the importance of handwashing as part of a program called Operation Food Safety.

    These children will be learning about food safety, in part, becauseone little boy became sick and almost died as a result of*E. coli*O157:H7.

    That little boy is the grandson of Arkansas Representative PercyMalone. As a result of his grandson’s illness, Malone became an advocate for foodsafety education. He introduced and helped pass legislation making Arkansas the firststate requiring food safety education for schools.

    The result was Operation Food Safety. The project is supported by acoalition drawn from state and health education departments, the University of Arkansas,the Arkansas Poultry Federation, the Arkansas Hospitality Association, and grocer groups.

    Operation Food Safety plans for the development of three curriculumpackages.

    The curriculum for pre-K through grade four, of which Squeaky andClean are a part, started in schools in 1998. The 60-plus-page curriculum is divided intothree clusters targeting the different grades and is designed for fun learning. It’sloaded with games and puzzles. More than 2,500 copies have already been distributed.

    The curriculum and puppets are available to other educators forfree.

    "It was always our plan to make it available throughout thestate and develop a model other states could use," says program coordinator AmyWaldroup.

    The two other curriculum packages, grades five through eight and andgrades nine through twelve, are now being developed and will be available during the1999-2000 school year.

    For more information, contact:

Amy WaldroupUniversity of ArkansasRoom O-114, Poultry Science CenterFayetteville, Arkansas 72701email: [email protected]  phone: 501/575-4409fax: 501/575-8775
News briefsUSDA's Meat and Poultry Hotline and the Big Chill
**Toll-free 1-800-535-4555
It’s time to talk about "Chill," the topic ofUSDA’s Meat and Poultry Hotline’s packet of news features. 

    Loaded with information for consumers, the packet includes featureson: - The Big Thaw--Safe Defrosting Methods for Consumers
- Fighting BAC (TM) by Chilling Out
- Refrigeration and Food Safety
- Appliance Thermometers
- Keeping Food Safe During a Power Outage

You can access the feature packet through our web site. Go to: www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/pubs/hotpacks.htm
*FDA Consumer Magazine* Highlights Sprouts
**"Q**uestions Keep Sprouting About Sprouts," notesthe January/February issue of the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) consumermagazine.

    The lead article focuses on illnesses traced to sprouts, explainingthe different kinds of sprouts, and new techniques being used by industry to improvesafety.

    In a section titled "How to Eat Sprouts Safely," FDAreminds consumers:

    **If you belong to one of the groups at high risk for foodbornediseases--children, the elderly, and people with compromised immune systems--avoid rawalfalfa sprouts.**

    If you are a healthy adult, follow these tips: - Buy only sprouts kept at refrigerator temperature. Select crisp-looking sprouts with the    buds attached. Avoid musty-smelling, dark, or slimy-looking sprouts.
- Refrigerate sprouts at home. The refrigerator should be set at no higher than 40 degrees    Fahrenheit (4 degrees Celsius).
- Wash hands with warm water and soap for at least 20 seconds before and after handling    raw foods.
- Rinse sprouts thoroughly with water before use. Rinsing can help remove surface dirt. Do    not use soap or other detergents.

    The article is available on the web site: http://www.fda.gov/fdac/default.htm

    For subscription information, call the Government Printing Office at202/512-1800.
New Director for Food Safety Initiative
**D**r. Morris Potter has been named to be the first directorof the President’s Food Safety Initiative program operated by FDA.

    Coming from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),Potter will be responsible for all of the food safety efforts at FDA’s Center forFood Safety and Applied Nutrition.

    Potter’s duties will include expanding and improving theFDA’s food-related inspection and surveillance. Potter will also coordinateFDA’s collaboration with other government agencies in responding to foodborne illnessoutbreaks, instituting additional prevention controls and strategies and conductingnationwide public education campaigns.

    At CDC, Potter served as assistant director for foodborne diseases.He also led the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Foodborne DiseaseSurveillance. 
Risk Communications
**I**nterested in risk communications? Check out thesebenchmark resources: - " Communicating Foodborne Disease Risk ,"  by Baruch Fischhoff and    Julie S. Downs,  Emerging Infectious Diseases , Vol. 3, No. 4, October-December 1997
- "Risk perception and communication," Chapter 34, by Baruch Fischhoff, Ann    Bostrom and Marilyn Jacobs Quadrel,  Oxford Textbook of Public Health,  3rd Edition,    Vol. 2, Oxford University Press, 1997 
How Can You Take in 6,000 Foods Without Gaining a Pound?
**D**ownload the USDA Nutrient Data Base for StandardReference.

    The data base is the primary source of food composition data in theU.S. It’s the only such data base in the world that’s free.

    The data base has values for as many as 81 nutrients in 6,000 foodsamong 22 food groups.

    Some 8,000 visitors access the web site each month. If you want tobe among them, go to: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp
New Web Site
**F**ood safety information from the food processing industryis now available through **www.safefood.org**

    The site is run by the National Food Processors Association (NFPA)and is expected to increase consumer awareness of the "safety benefits andnutritional value of processed foods," according to NFPA’s Kelly Johnston.
Catch the *Catchment*
**T**he latest in FoodNet data is now available throughCDC’s newly developed newsletter,*The Catchment.*

    The first issue, released Fall 1998, includes information onFoodNet’s active surveillance of laboratory-confirmed cases of foodborne illness,which is considered FoodNet’s "core activity."

    The newsletter also provides a rundown of FoodNet abstractspresented at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases in March 1998.The overview provides abstract titles, authors and some highlights of interestingfindings. 

    The newsletter also includes a one-page Q & A concerning *E.coli* O157:H7 and Diarrhea-Associated Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (D+HUS) which featuresan interview with Dr. Paul Mead, a medical epidemiologist from the Foodborne and DiarrhealDiseases Branch. Dr. Mead notes that during the first 12 months of surveillance, " *E.coli* O157:H7 accounted for at least 69 percent of D+HUS cases among children in thecatchment area." Mead also pointed out that while D+HUS is typically associated withbloody diarrhea, nearly one-quarter of the D+HUS patients reported non-bloody diarrhea.

    The newsletter is available through the web: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/foodnet/foodnet.htm

    Or, if you’d like an old-fashioned hard copy to hold in yourhands, email Sam Yang at [email protected], or call404/639-4356. And here’s the best part--it’s FREE.
New Emerging Infectious Diseases Plan
**I**n November 1998, the Centers for Disease Control andPrevention (CDC) released the second phase of their plan to combat emerging infectiousdiseases, including foodborne illnesses.

    The plan, titled "Preventing Emerging Infectious Diseases: AStrategy for the 21st Century," provides a detailed description of CDC’s effortsto understand, detect, control and prevent national and international infectious diseases.

    The plan builds on an earlier plan released in 1994. 

    The plan targets nine categories of problems, including antibioticresistance and foodborne and waterborne diseases.

    To access the plan on the web, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/emergplan/
The BAC PageOperation Fight BAC!TM…Florida 
**W**ith teams of volunteers and a determination to changeconsumers’ food handling habits, Operation Fight BAC!TM. . . Florida is moving into high gear. 

    Starting in January of this year and continuing until March 2000,the group is holding consumer workshops throughout central Florida on safe food handlingusing the four key Fight BAC!TMmessages and supporting materials. 

    According to group facilitator Roy Costa of the Florida Departmentof Business and Professional Regulation, "our goal is to see if we can document achange in consumers’ attitudes and behaviors. Consumer food safety education is muchtalked about, but few studies exist showing the efficacy of educational interventions. Akey part of our effort is to gauge the effectiveness of our approach, analyze thesignificance of the findings and publish a report."

    To do this, Costa and students from the University of South FloridaCollege of Public Health will be conducting pre-and post tests of consumers. The study isbeing conducted by Jaime Sanchez as part of his Masters thesis in public health and willinvolve follow-up surveys.

    A variety of tools will be used in the consumer workshops. A FightBAC!TM slide show was created anddonated by the Florida Association of Milk, Food and Environmental Sanitarians. Handoutsare being provided by Lynn Isaacs of the Food and Drug Administration.

    Interested in hearing more? Contact Costa at 904/943-9602, or email[email protected].
Canada Fights BAC!TM
**L**ast November, a unique coalition of Canada’s foodindustries, consumer and health groups, and government came together to start a newnational public awareness campaign on food safety in the home kitchen.

    The Canadian Partnership for Consumer Food Safety Education is usingthe Fight BAC!TM  logo andmessages. The campaign was launched in five cities across the country, Ottawa, Halifax,Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.

    "Fight BAC!TMis the most ambitious and far-reaching consumer food safety awareness campaign everundertaken in Canada," said Lyle Vanclief, Minister, Agriculture and Agri-Food.

    Information from the campaign will be distributed through publichealth offices, public service announcement on radio and TV, supermarket displays andcommunity events.

    For more information, check the new web site: www.canfightbac.org
Help for BAC!TM
**S**usan Conley, director of food safety education for FSIS,began a one-year appointment this past January to assist the Partnership for Food SafetyEducation with the Fight BAC!TMcampaign.

    Conley will work with the Partnership as a full-time technicaladvisor assisting in project development, consumer education outreach and food serviceworker training. 

    Conley is on assignment at the University of Maryland/JointInstitute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. 

    "I’m thrilled to be working on the campaign," Conleysaid, "and I’m encouraging all the ‘BAC fighters’ out there to contactme. I want to hear how you’re fighting BAC."

    One of Conley’s projects will be assisting with the new *BacTalk*newsletter by providing articles about successful education campaigns using Fight BAC!The newsletter, and subscription information, can be accessed through the web site: www.fightbac.org

    Conley can be reached at 301/405-5421. Fax 301/405-7404. Or, email: [email protected]   
Subscribe for Free!
*The Food Safety Educator* is a free quarterly publication. To subscribe, send usyour name and mailing address.

    You can e-mail the information to: [email protected]

    You can fax to 202/720-9063.

    Or you can write:Food Safety EducationRoom 2942 South Bldg.FSIS/USDAWashington, D.C. 20250

The United States Department of Agriculture(USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race,color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexualorientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to allprograms.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication ofprogram information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’sTARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination, writeUSDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W Whitten, Building, 14th andIndependence Avenue, SW, Washington DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice or TDD).USDA is an equal employment opportunity provider and employer.

****

**For Further Information Contact:**FSIS Food Safety Education StaffDianne Durant, EditorPhone: (202) 720-7943Fax: (202) 720-9063

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