The last typhoon left most of Manila without electricity, and with no electricity, we are faced with problems regarding food safety. Here are some tidbits you should know about keeping your food safe whenever there’s power outage:

• Keep refrigerator doors closed; a full freezer can keep food safe for 48 hours, while a half-full freezer can for 24 hours
• Refrigerated food is safe so long as power loss doesn’t exceed four hours
• Dairy products, eggs, meat, poultry, and fish should be kept in a cooler with ice
• If food has thawed before the power comes back on, never taste to know if it’s still okay

               - Evaluate food items separately
               - Appearance and odor may not always be good indications of spoilage

• Read the food’s temperature with an appliance thermometer: a reading of 40°F and below is fine
• Discard food that registers a reading higher than 40°F