P&G launches initiative to raise awareness among Hispanic Consumers about food safety.

A substantial proportion of food-borne related illness is attributable to improper food handling practices inside the home. In order to raise awareness about these risks among Hispanic consumers, P&G and its brand Dawn with Odor Eraser announced that they are teaming up with Dr. Elsa Murano, former USDA Under Secretary and top food safety official, to educate consumers on how to handle and store food safely. Dawn and Dr. Murano are promoting 10 essential food safety tips that highlight key aspects of handling food safely and storing it properly to better take care of themselves and their families.

“The need for the dissemination of food safety education information to this growing segment of the population is imperative”, says Dr. Murano. “An improvement in consumer food-handling behavior is likely to reduce the risk and incidence of food-borne disease in our community. I’m proud to be part of this educational initiative and to be able to work with Dawn to raise awareness among the Hispanic community” affirmed Dr. Murano.

Hispanics center many of their social occasions around food. They love to cook at home for their loves ones and don’t miss an occasion to get together with their family and friends. Recipes are passed through generations and food is shared during informal parties and celebrations that may last for hours.

Many Hispanics are unaware of proper food safety practices and may leave food sitting at room temperature for long periods of time, not paying heed to the fact that leaving and storing leftovers at unsafe food temperatures or not properly washing food containers can contaminate food. Dawn, which recently introduced a new product version especially designed to reduce odors from plastic storage containers, wants to educate Hispanic consumers by promoting easy to follow steps that will improve food safety at home.

It has been estimated that food-borne diseases cause approximately 76 million illnesses in the United States each year. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an arm of the US Department of Health and Human Services*, high rates of food-borne illness exist among the Hispanic population. Among these findings, the CDC has indicated that Hispanic infants had a 12 times greater incidence of listeriosis, and that Hispanic women age 30 to 34 had a 13 times greater likelihood of contracting listeriosis from contaminated food than their non- Hispanic counterparts.

“For example, listeriosis is an illness caused by eating foods contaminated with a common organism often found in soil and water, called Listeria monocytogenes, which can be harmful for pregnant women and their babies” mentioned Dr. Murano. “Unlike other bacteria, Listeria can grow at refrigeration temperatures of 40°F or below, so in order to prevent listeriosis, it’s very important to be aware of the safety food guidelines such as cleaning your refrigerator regularly to avoid cross-contamination.” Mentioned Dr. Elsa Murano.

“Existing odors in dishes could mean they have food residues and are not fully clean and may contaminate the food you eat. Concluded Dr. Murano. “By promoting food safety at home, we want to educate our consumers to better take care of their family health and well-being” says Anelsie Ramos, Hispanic External Relations Manager for Dawn. With Dawn Odor Eraser, we are able to offer our Hispanic costumers a powerful detergent that fights odors like onion, garlic, and fish on plastics and works hard to remove grease from all of their pots, and pans to not only cleanse but also ensure that they fully enjoy the taste of the food they love.”