Package indicators to help increase food safety

The statistics can be staggering: one in six Americans will get sick from food poisoning this year (that’s nearly 53 million people).  A very likely place for food poisoning is in the home: the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal that for the years 2009-2010, 21% of foodborne disease outbreaks occurred in a private home, the cause being undercooking or leaving the food out for too long at an unsafe temperature.

While most food poisoning victims will recover without any lasting effects from their illness, for some, the effects can be devastating and, for an estimated 3,000 Americans, deadly. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, those most at risk include pregnant women and persons with chronic illnesses, as well as an ever-growing segment of the U.S. population: older adults.