Food safety tips for sprouts

On this page:

• Sprouts and food poisoning
• Shopping
• Chilling
• Cleaning
• Preparing/cooking
• Reduce your risk

Sprouts and food poisoning

Sprouts can come into contact with harmful bacteria:

• in the farm environment
• during packaging
• during storage
• during transportation
• during preparation/cooking through cross-contamination

Do

• Thoroughly cook sprouts. Heating sprouts on high heat kills most harmful bacteria and reduces your risk of food poisoning.
• Take extra precautions when eating sprouts if you are in one of these at-risk groups.

Do not

• Don't eat raw or undercooked sprouts.

Shopping

• Only buy sprouts that are refrigerated.
• Select crisp-looking sprouts. Avoid sprouts that look dark or smell musty.
• If you are buying sprouts from a bulk display, use tongs, gloves, or place a bag over your hand to put sprouts into a plastic bag.
• Keep sprouts separate from raw meat, poultry, and seafood in the grocery cart to avoid cross-contamination.

Chilling

• Refrigerate sprouts as soon as you get home.
• Sprouts that are not prepackaged should be consumed within a few days.
• Throw away sprouts that are past their "best before" date.
• Throw away sprouts that have lost their crispness, look dark, or smell musty.

Cleaning

Washing your hands and following proper cleaning techniques can help you avoid cross-contamination and prevent the spread of food poisoning.

• Use warm water and soap to thoroughly wash all utensils, countertops, and cutting boards before and after handling sprouts. 

Preparing/cooking

Wash your hands thoroughly with warm water and soap for at least 20 seconds, before and after handling sprouts.

• Rinse sprouts in cool, running water before cooking them.
• Ensure sprouts are thoroughly cooked before eating them.

Reduce your risk

People in the following at-risk groups should take extra precautions when eating sprouts because they are at greater risk of food poisoning:

• children
• older adults
• pregnant women
• people with weakened immune systems

In addition to following the safety tips on this page, here are a few extra precautions you should take to protect your health:

• Check the food label's ingredients list for sprouts. Do not eat any sprouts unless you're sure they've been thoroughly cooked.
• When eating out, request that raw sprouts not be added to your meal or that any sprouts in your dish be thoroughly cooked.

What the Government of Canada does to protect you

The Government of Canada is committed to food safety.

Health Canada establishes regulations and standards relating to the safety and nutritional quality of foods sold in Canada. Through inspection and enforcement activities, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency verifies that food sold in Canada meets Health Canada's requirements.