Eggs: Handle with Care!

Eggs are a potentially hazardous food and can be contaminated with Salmonella. Salmonella is a major cause of foodborne illness and eggs are one of the most likely sources.

You cannot tell by sight, smell or taste whether an egg is contaminated with Salmonella. Both the inside and outside of the egg can be contaminated so handle eggs the same way you would handle raw poultry.

The only way to kill Salmonella in eggs is to properly cook them. Cooking eggs or foods containing eggs to 74°C (165°F) or hotter will kill Salmonella. When an egg has been safely cooked, the yolk is hard, not runny.

SAFE HANDLING OF EGGS

RECEIVING:

• Only buy graded eggs from an approved supplier.
• Only buy eggs that are clean, uncracked, and refrigerated. Never buy or use dirty or cracked eggs.
• Only buy and use eggs that have time left on their "Best Before Date." Don't use eggs that have expired.

STORING:

• Always store eggs in a refrigerator at 4°C (40°F) or colder until just before you use them.

POOLING EGGS:

• Pooling eggs is the breaking and combining of multiple (more than one) eggs into a container. The pooled eggs can then be mixed together or remain unmixed. While only a small percentage of eggs are contaminated with Salmonella, the pooling of eggs can spread contamination from just one egg to the entire batch of pooled eggs. For this reason, pooling of eggs is risky and must be done carefully.

CLEANING AND HYGIENE AFTER HANDLING EGGS

• Hands must be washed thoroughly for 20–30 seconds with soap and warm water immediately after handling eggs.
• Thoroughly wash and sanitize containers, equipment, dishes, utensils and food contact surfaces that held or touched uncooked eggs or foods containing eggs that have not yet been cooked, before using them again.