>>"However, the majority of food poisonings occur as a result of unsafe preparation and cooking practices." Show us the data. http://barfblog.foodsafety.ksu.edu/articles/handwashing/----------------------------------------->Posted on October 19, 2007 by Doug PowellTracy Hughes has a bone to pick with television shows.People rarely wash their handsHughes writes in British Columbia's Salmon Arm Observer that,on medical dramas, you almost never see hand-washing unless it is a top-notch surgeon scrubbing up before he goes into the operating room and a nurse whispers some tragic secret to him just before he has to complete the first-ever super-duper, resection of the quadruple nerve -ending bypass.What really gets Hughes is the number of scenes that place characters in washrooms and they don't wash -- even after they use the toilet.I agree. When we looked at TV chefs a few years ago, very few washed their hands. There was a food safety infraction on average every four minutes.------------------------------------------At least the TV chefs probably don't eat the food!But, if people see Emeril and others demonstrating poor food sanitation, you think they don't say to themselves, "They did it on TV, it should be okay.">Further, telling people -- like Commissioner Bronson did -- that, "once consumers have purchased the food it is up to them to follow safe and proper food handling practices" seems simplistic -- or convenient. Especially considering the number of salmonella outbreaks linked to Florida tomatoes that consumers could have done ?? nothing to prevent.Simplistic, maybe, but still true! When are people going to realize that no matter how clean the food is when they purchase it, they still have to practice safe food handling? And they should assume the worst, that it HAS been contaminated and they need to wash or cook the produce to be safe. As for your peanut butter comment, what about the parent who makes a ham and cheese sandwich for one kid, but the other insists on peanut butter and jelly? How many parents know, or pay attention to the fact, that you should not use the same knife you used with the mayonnaise for the jelly or peanut butter jar. The first time, no problem. But what happens the second time, especially if the peanut butter or jelly is not refrigerated? Does the food poisoning get blamed on the tomato or lettuce?I see people using the same plate to carry raw meat to the grill as they do to bring the cooked meat to the table all the time. Don't try to tell me that consumer practices are not a major problem with food poisoning cases, and most probably go unreported.