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Clean Hands, Equipment, and Countertops

Bacteria spread throughout the kitchen as our hands touch equipment, food, counters, or cupboards. Wash your hands, surfaces, and utensils often.

• To wash your hands, use soap and hot water for 20 seconds. It takes 20 seconds to sing a chorus of Jingle Bells or the Alphabet Song, so sing along while you wash.
• Wash your hands with hot soapy water before handling food. Wash your hands after using the bathroom, changing diapers, and handling pets.
• Wash your hands after sneezing, coughing, or blowing your nose. Throw away dirty tissues. Don’t put them in your pocket.
• Wash cutting boards, dishes, can openers, utensils, and countertops with hot soapy water after preparing food. Cutting boards should be made of plastic or other nonporous material. These boards should be washed in the dishwasher or in hot soapy water after each use. Replace boards that have cracks and deep cuts.
• To sanitize, clean, or wash surfaces, wipe them with a solution of 1 teaspoon of chlorine bleach in a quart of warm water. Make this solution as you need it, because it loses its strength when it is stored longer than 24 hours.
• To clean kitchen surfaces, use fresh clean cloth towels, dish cloths, or sponges every day. Wash towels and cloths in the hot cycle when you wash clothes. Or use paper towels instead of cloth.

For more information about safe food handling and preparation, call USDA’s Meat and Poultry Hotline (1-800-535-4555) or FDA’s Food Information and Seafood Hotline (1-800-332-4010), or contact the University’s Extension office in your county.