TRANSCRIPT:
If you're like most people, the summer holiday period might involve shared meals and there are some favourites in the mix - turkey and chicken among them.
But one in two people are making a stomach-turning mistake.
Do you know what it is?
The C-E-O of the Food Safety Information Council, Lydia Buchtmann, is here to bust a common myth.
"And a huge number of people, one in two people, adults who cook raw chicken said they actually wash it before they cook it. Now this is really risky, because firstly any poultry is washed in processing so you don't need to do it. But if you wash it, you're going to splash it right around the kitchen and you're going to get bacteria everywhere. Particularly salmonella, which gives you a really nasty form of food poisoning."
She wants to make sure fewer than the average 4.67 million* people get food poisoning this year, because it is no joke.
It's also costing the economy around three billion dollars a year*, with an uptick in cases over the Christmas-New Year period.
Food safety experts say food poisoning is more dangerous than most people realise.
"It's not just a funny tummy, it really is nasty. And it can make you really ill. It can be life threatening if you have a poor immune system or if you're pregnant or if you're frail and elderly."
If you're keen for a roast, Christmas ham is another European tradition, adopted in the southern hemisphere.
You can have your ham hot or cold, but experts including Ms Buchtmann say; it can't be old!
If it's wrapped, check the use-by date and abide by it.
Lydia Buchtmann says to remember that a ham is for a few days - not for life.
"Wrap it up in, I'd get something called a ham-bag which is sort of just a cloth bag you can put it in. Or a clean cloth. Soak that cloth in a mixture of vinegar and water, so about a litre of water with two tablespoons of vinegar in it. And keep that cloth moist so it doesn't dry out and keep it in the fridge and change it every three days or so."
Temperature matters in the preparation process - try to remember these numbers.
Cook your meat to 75 degrees when you test it with a thermometer - that includes mince and sausages.
Keep your fridge at 5 degrees - it's important, so you might need to get a thermometer, to test it every few hours.
And if you've bought some top shelf bubbles or wine, it shouldn't be on the top shelf of the fridge - take it out and put it on ice.
Beers and wine are shelf-stable when they're in unopened bottles - so they don't present a risk of illness, unless you drink too much of them!
If you're hosting a big meal, save your valuable fridge space for the food; and there is a hierarchy.
Drinks are out - except for juice and dairy.
The top shelf belongs to salads, with cheeses and dips below and at the bottom, uncooked meats and poultry - that's to make sure they don't contaminate anything else.
If you're not a drinker and you don't eat meat - a lingering cheese platter and dip are an opportunity for bacteria to thrive.
Hosts will need to make hourly trips to the fridge to refresh these dishes - and a generous serving can be a mistake.
"The idea is to put them out in small servings at a time. It's a real risk if you, say, put out a dip or you put a brie there or something and then you get more stuff out of the fridge and you put it on top. So, put out small amounts, leave the rest in the fridge and replace it every hour or so."
Vegans are not in the clear, either - there are some key considerations with your summer salads and vegetables.
Just like your cheeses and dips, they can't sit out for too long - and they can easily spoil in the heat.
You'll know, if you've ever left a salad in your bag on a hot day.
And Ms Buchtmann says there is another big mistake we're making, in the name of being clean: gloves.
"Most people leave them on way too long, so we actually think it is better if you just wash your hands quite often. And you need to wash your hands before you handle food and if you've been handling risky foods like raw meat and raw poultry."
Another tip is to buy what you need and not too much more - it cuts down the risk of food spoiling.
But there is a fix if you find yourself swimming in leftovers.
Don't love them and leave them - love them and freeze them.
It will mean less waste, fewer opportunities for nasty cases of food poisoning - and less time at the doctor's office or hospital, when you want to have a break.
