On Tuesday, June 19, and Wednesday, June 20, a meat and poultry HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) workshop will take place in 203 Hitchner Hall, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Registration is $130 and includes the sanitation workshop, notebook and lunches.

For more information, to register or to request special accommodations, contact Theresa Tilton at (207) 942-7396 or (800) 287-1485 in Maine, or e-mail theresa.tilton@maine.edu. Registration also can be done online through the Extension website at: http://umaine.edu/food-health/food-safety/sanitation-and-haccp-workshops/.

UMaine Extension programs are open and accessible to all in accordance with program goals. To provide adequate time to respond to special requests, please provide as much notice as possible.

Deer tick

Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in Maine. May is Lyme Disease Awareness Month in Maine, so remember to do your tick checks! With the mild winter, it is never too early to start thinking about tick prevention.

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection that is carried by Ixodes scapularis (the deer tick). Maine had a record high number of cases in 2011, with positives occurring in all 16 counties. Lyme disease is most common among school aged children and middle aged adults. As the weather begins to get warmer, more ticks will be out in the open. Most Lyme disease infections in Maine occur during the summer months.

The most common early symptom of Lyme disease is an expanding red rash that occurs 3 – 30 days after being bitten. Fever, joint, and muscle pains may also occur. Lyme disease is treatable, and the majority of patients recover after receiving appropriate therapy.

Lyme disease is a preventable illness. Maine CDC recommends following the “No Ticks 4 ME” approach which includes:

1. Wear protective clothing
2. Use an EPA approved repellent
3. Perform daily tick checks
4. Use caution in tick habitats

Ticks must be attached for at least 24 hours for the bacteria that causes Lyme disease to be transmitted, so prompt removal of ticks is extremely important. Anyone with a known tick bite, or who spends time in a tick habitat, should watch for symptoms for at least 30 days after exposure. If symptoms develop, call your healthcare provider.

Additional information:

• Maine CDC has numerous educational materials available on their website at www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/infectious-disease/epi/vector-borne/lyme/index.shtml.
• UMaine Extension Bulletin #5047, Ticks.

The UMaine Cooperative Extension is now acception applications for Master Food Preserver Class of 2012.

Find more information about the course and the application process here.

UMaine Extension educator Marjorie Peronto said the food drive, which ended this week, will help local food pantries and soup kitchens in the county, which have seen a rise in the number of people using their services.

To “Get Your Plate in Shape,” take action on the 2012 Dietary Guidelines for Americans and MyPlate recommendations by making changes in the following four areas. Choose steps that work for you and start today.

Balance Calories

• Enjoy your food, but eat less and avoid oversized portions. Use a smaller plate, bowl and glass. Cook more often at home where you are in control of what’s in your food. When eating out, choose lower calorie menu options.

Foods to Increase

• Make half your plate fruits and vegetables: Eat a variety of vegetables, especially dark-green, red and orange varieties. Add fresh, dried, frozen or canned fruits to meals and snacks.
• Make at least half your grains whole grains. Choose 100 percent whole-grain breads, cereals, crackers, pasta or brown rice. Check the ingredients list on food packages to find whole-grain foods
• Switch to fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk. Fat-free and low-fat milk have the same amount of calcium and other essential nutrients as whole milk, but less fat and fewer calories. For those who are lactose intolerant, try lactose-free milk or a calcium-fortified soy beverage.

Foods to Reduce

• Compare sodium in foods like soup, bread or frozen meals, and choose the foods with lower numbers. Compare sodium in foods and choose those with lower numbers, and season your foods with herbs and spices instead of salt.
• Drink water instead of sugary drinks.
• Switch from solid fats to healthy oils like olive or canola oil.

Be physically active your way. Adults need at 30 minutes of physical activity five days a week. The 30 minutes can be broken up into shorter, 10-minute segments throughout the day. Choose activities that you enjoy, and start by doing as much as you can.

UMaine Extension programs are open and accessible to all in accordance with program goals. To provide adequate time to respond to your request please provide as much notice as possible.

Program sessions, each limited to 24 participants, costs $2 per child and will be held at the Cumberland County Extension office, 75 Clearwater Drive, Ste 104, in Falmouth. Students will learn about food preservation science with pickles. In the process, they’ll dissect a pickle, identify pickle flavors through smell and taste, play pickle Jeopardy and sample different pickled products.

Sessions are scheduled Feb. 22 from 9:30-11:30 a.m. and 1:30-3:30 p.m.; Feb. 23 from 9:30-11:30 a.m. and 1:30-3:30 p.m.; April 17, 9:30-11:30 a.m. and 1:30-3:30 p.m.; and April 19, 9:30-11:30 a.m. and 1:30-3:30 p.m.

To register, call (207) 781-6099 or 1-800-287-1471 in Maine. UMaine Extension programs are open and accessible to all in accordance with program goals. Participants with special needs are asked to contact the office at least 10 days prior to the desired sessions to allow accommodations to be arranged.

We invite all interested community food and nutrition colleagues and students to participate and/or attend the Nutrition, Food and Physical Activity Symposium.

Learn more>>

The ground beef products may be contaminated with a strain of Salmonella Typhimurium, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced. Ten of 14 recently reported cases of food poisoning are believed to be a result of ground beef purchased in stores in Maine, New York, New Hampshire and Vermont between Oct. 12 and Nov. 20. None of the cases were reported as fatal.

Products subject to recall are any size package of 73-percent-to-90-percent Hannaford ground beef, including 80-, 90- and 95-percent Taste of Inspirations Angus ground beef and 85- and 90-percent Nature’s Place ground beef.

The various ground beef packages bear sell-by dates of Dec. 17, 2011 or earlier. The USDA and Hannaford are concerned that some product may be frozen and in consumers’ freezers, they said in a news release.

Jason Bolton, a food-safety specialist in the Penobscot County Extension office, can be reached at (207) 233-2569.