Summer Slump will soon be upon us

During the summer in southeast Kansas cattle on cool season fescue grass pastures may tend to perform poorly. Often times, this is due to summer slump, otherwise known as fescue toxicosis. The fescue grass plant contains an endophyte (fungus). This endophyte helps make the plant hardy, but it also produces a chemical (alkaloid) that can cause negative effects in cattle, if eaten in high doses.

Symptoms of summer slump include poor hair coat, elevated body temperatures, feet problems (fescue foot), and poor breeding rates. While these symptoms can affect all cattle, it is most generally noticed in black hided cattle.

Summer slump increases core body temperatures. Affected cattle spend the majority of their time in ponds or in under shade, rather than grazing in the pasture. Some strategies to mitigate the effects of summer slump include feeding a good mineral supplement (specifically formulated for use on fescue pastures), culling poor performers from the herd, and providing alternative feed sources.

For more information on fescue and its effect on cattle, contact me a (620)-223-3720 or by e-mail at [email protected].

Kathy S. McEwan, Southwind Extension District, Family and Consumer Sciences, Foods and Nutrition

 

For many people, the Memorial Day Holiday marks the “official” beginning of summer and means enjoying time outdoors and firing up the grill. Elizabeth Boyle, meat safety and quality specialist for K-State Research and Extension, said barbecuing requires some safety practices to ensure everyone enjoys the food and the summer grilling season.

1. Avoid cross-contamination

Boyle’s first food safety tip is to avoid cross-contamination. Frequently washing hands is necessary.

“Washing your hands becomes important, especially with grilling,” Boyle said. “We are taking food outside, handling door knobs, handling tongs, handling raw meat and poultry, and handling fresh fruits and vegetables.”

If you don’t have a sink readily available or soap and water on hand, at least use hand sanitizing wipes to try to decontaminate your hands, she said.

Also, make sure to decontaminate utensils and cooking supplies. Common items that could lead to cross-contamination include cutting boards, knives and other tableware, and meat thermometers.

Boyle said to use separate cutting boards for meat and produce, or thoroughly wash the cutting board after each use with soap and hot water. This prevents uncooked meat juices from contaminating fresh, uncooked produce.

Between checking temperatures of meat using a meat thermometer, make sure if the product hasn’t reached necessary doneness to wash the stem off in hot soapy water and rinse it before checking the temperature of the meat again, she said.

2. Cook meat to appropriate temperatures.

For many, marinating meat comes before grilling. Boyle said to make sure to marinate at refrigeration temperatures.

“We want to keep foods out of the danger zone which is between 40 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit,” she said. “Foods can’t be in that temperature range for more than two hours. Otherwise, we have concerns not only with spoilage but also with potential growth of microorganisms that cause foodborne illness.”

To make sure that the food you are serving is safe after grilling, use a meat thermometer, Boyle said. Most retail stores offer inexpensive meat thermometers and many different versions to fit your preference.

“For a hamburger patty, I would insert (the thermometer) about an inch into the patty so I get my tip to the center,” she said. “Don’t take (the temperature) from the top down but from the side.”

For ground beef, lamb or pork, cook that product to an internal temperature of 160 F. Whole cuts such as steaks and chops should be cooked to at least 145 F. All poultry products need to reach at least 165 F.

“We can’t rely on color,” Boyle said. “Different factors play into meat color, and those can lead to a condition called persistent pink, where even though the product has reached 160 degrees (F), the meat is still pink in the middle. There’s also a condition called premature browning, where the meat can turn brown at 140 degrees, not be safe but look like it’s done.”

3. Wash produce, not meat.

When you’re working with produce, make sure you wash it before eating, Boyle said. This prevents potential microorganisms on the surface of produce from making people sick.

Make sure to scrub melons such as cantaloupes and watermelons with a vegetable brush. Wash your leafy lettuce, head lettuce, and other fruits and vegetables under running water. Then, dry off produce before putting it on a clean cutting board and cutting it.

Some consumers think they need to wash their meat before they grill it or before they get it ready for marinating, Boyle said, but unlike fresh produce, you do not need to wash meat products.

“Our modern harvesting practices have washing procedures inherently associated with them, so when you buy your meat at the grocery store, there’s no need for you to wash it,” Boyle said. “Even if you did wash it, what could result is a lot of cross-contamination in your sink area and on your counters from the splatters or the drops that aspirate from hitting the meat surface.”

4. Store leftovers properly.

Usually, barbecues with family and friends mean everyone is having fun and doing activities together, Boyle said, but make sure the meal and any leftovers don’t sit out longer than two hours. Make sure to package up leftovers, and put them in the refrigerator or cooler with ice or ice packs to keep them out of that temperature danger zone.

More information about food safety for grilling can be found at the Southwind Extension offices or by contacting Kathy at [email protected] or by phone at 620-365-2242.

Kathy S. McEwan,Family, and Consumer Sciences Agent Foods & Nutrition, SNAP-Ed Coordinator, Southwind Extension District – Iola Office, P.O. Box 845, Iola KS 66749, 620-365-224, [email protected]

Time to get ready for canning season

Fresh pickles, ripe tomatoes, and other garden goodies may still be months away, but if you plan on canning those foods, now’s a good time to check on your supplies.

And if that includes buying a new canner, Kansas State University food safety specialist Karen Blakeslee says there is a lot to think about before selecting a canner.

“The first thing to think about is what kind of cooktop do you have on your stove,” said Blakeslee, who is also the director of the university’s Rapid Response Center. “The cooktop is going to dictate what type of canner you’re going to get.”

She said most canners will work on a gas stove or a coil-type stove. But the newer, smooth top stoves could create some problems with some canners.

“Some of the smooth top stoves have automatic shutoffs on them if they get too hot,” which could mean the food is not properly heated and thus preserved, according to Blakeslee.

“The other thing to think about is the weight that you’re putting on that stove top. Canners are heavy, and when you add water and full jars of food, that increases weight, and you could end up cracking your stovetop because of the weight and the heat.”

She recommends following the stove manufacturer’s recommendations for using canners on a smooth stovetop.

“There are some canners that I would not recommend using on a smooth top surface,” Blakeslee said. “One example is a water bath canner like the old Granite-Ware, which are speckled blue or black enamel canners. Many people have them and they work great, but the problem with those is they have the bumpy bottoms. On a smooth cooktop surface, you do not get maximum heat contact from the burner into the canner, so it takes forever to heat up water.”

Blakeslee, who teaches classes on canning through K-State Research and Extension offices in the state, suggests a stainless steel water bath canner sold by the Ball company that has a flat bottom. Presto is another company that says its product can be used on a smooth top, but Blakeslee says “make sure that your burner is as large as possible.”

She adds that the bottom of the canner should not extend beyond the burner more than one inch to get maximum heat transfer from the burner into the canner.

Canners sold by All American and Mirro warn consumers not to use them on a smooth cooktop.

“An alternative to using your stove top for water bath canners is an electric water bath canner sold by the Ball company,” Blakeslee said. “This is a stand-alone canner; it has its own heater/burner system and is separate from your stove, so you don’t have to worry about what kind of canner to use on top of your stove.

“This is a good investment if you do a lot of water bath canning. It can also be used for general cooking such as making soup or stew.”

Blakeslee has some other timely tips leading up to canning season:

Use a canner that is recommended for the type of food you want to can. “If you’re canning plain vegetables, like green beans, you have to use a pressure canner because green beans are low acid foods,” she said. “Plain vegetables like green beans, carrots, corn, even meat…those types of foods must be pressure canned.”

She added that you can use a water bath canner for such foods as fruits, jams, jellies, and pickles.

“A pressure canner can be used like a water bath canner. Just leave the weight off so the pressure is not applied,” Blakeslee said.

Have your dial gauge tested.  Southwind Extension offers this service for free. Gauge brands that can be tested include Presto, National, Magic Seal and Maid of Honor dial gauge pressure canners.

“Check dial gauges every year so you know how accurate the gauge is reading,” she said.

Check your canning supplies. The food safety specialist says you should check to make sure jars are not scratched or chipped and that the rims of jars are not damaged. A damaged jar could crack inside a canner, “and that’s not good,” she said.

Other supplies you may need to have in stock include pectin for jams and jellies; lemon juice or citric acid for tomatoes; and other supplies that vary based on the type of food you plan to can.

“We want you to be smart and safe when it comes to home canning,” Blakeslee said. “It’s a great way to preserve produce you grow or buy from a farmer’s market. Be smart about how you’re canning food. While there are some things that haven’t changed over the years, there are some procedures and methods that have changed, so make sure you’re up to date on what you’re doing when it comes to home canning.”

As part of our Grow, It Prepare It series, I will be offering preservation classes in Iola beginning May 9 with Preservation 101.  This class is a pre-requisite for the other “hands-on” classes to follow.  For more information or to register for the Preservation 101 class, call Kathy at 620-365-2242.  Class details are available on the Southwind District website at www.southwind.kus.edu.