The World Health Organisation (WHO) has advised households to discard any refrigerated foods that have been exposed to power outages lasting more than four hours.
The global health agency noted that food products could become unsafe if they have been exposed to temperatures above 5°C for more than two hours.
This advice was shared in a series of posts on The agency’s X (formerly Twitter) handle @who on Friday, June 7, to mark World Food Safety Day.
World Food Safety Day, observed every June 7, aims to draw attention to food safety. This year’s theme emphasizes the importance of being prepared for food safety incidents, regardless of their severity.
According to the organization, if a power outage exceeds four hours, all perishable foods in the fridge, including meat, poultry, fish, and leftovers, should be discarded.
“If there has been a power outage in your area, refrigerated or frozen food may not be safe to eat. Products can become unsafe if they have been exposed to temperatures above 5 °C for more than two hours.
“After four hours of a power cut, the following apply: throw out all perishable foods in your fridge, such as meat, poultry, fish and leftovers
“Throw out all items in your freezer once they have thawed or cook them immediately, if they have been exposed to ambient temperature for more than two hours,” it wrote.
However, it remains uncertain how well people in developing countries like Nigeria, where poverty is widespread and power supply is among the world’s poorest, will follow this warning.
The WHO also advised that people should never taste foods to determine their safety, adding that if there is any doubt, the foods should be thrown away.
“Food safety incidents are situations where there is a potential or confirmed health risk associated with food consumption.
“A food incident can happen, for example, due to accidents, inadequate controls, food fraud or natural events. While being ready to manage food safety incidents requires dedicated efforts from policymakers, food safety authorities, farmers and food business operators, consumers also can play an active role,” WHO added on its website.