Carmen Hall: Food for thought and aunties who wasted nothing

We would all like to think our food handling and personal hygiene practices are up to scratch but you need to be more vigilant when it gets hotter. Photo / Getty

I love food but when it comes to buying, purchasing and consuming it, I have a few quirks.

First up I have to religiously check the use-by date on every item. Even if it's close, like a week out or a frightening few days, it won't make it into my trolley.

I think my phobia stems from afternoon tea visits to three old aunties when I was I child. They lived 59km away in Invercargill and when we were in the big smoke my dad insisted we visit.

The trio were all spinsters and lived together in a well-kept weatherboard house which smelled of mothballs and mould.

My sister and I would howl in protest every time one of these surprise visits were sprung upon us because they all wore wigs and suffered from eczema. That was really scary for a young kid, no matter how much they smiled.

Another ritual those old aunties had was their table was always set and brimming with food covered in a net-like cloth.

There would be a teapot and cups, plates and bowls and knives and forks. You could find sauces and pickles and other condiments all stacked up alongside the salt and pepper. And then there would be all the cakes and biscuits.

This may sound a bit like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory but unfortunately my aunties never looked at the use-by dates. They may not have been invented.

We would be poked and prodded into filling up our plates under their watchful eyes.

Looking back it never killed me.

But what will knock your socks off is food poisoning, and medical officer of health Dr Phil Shoemack says it is not uncommon over the summer months.

About 200,000 people across the country are struck down every year, according to the Ministry of Primary Industries.

Shoemack says we would all like to think our food handling and personal hygiene practices are up to scratch but you need to be more vigilant when it gets hotter.

Undercooked and contaminated meat are major culprits and dirty barbecues are a "haven for pests".

Good food hygiene starts with "clean hands, clean cooking areas and clean tools".

Sounds like common sense.

My aunties were not good at clearing the table but in hindsight they must have nailed some of the safety standards. Or maybe it's just colder in the deep south.