Photo: Gemma Billings / Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Houston Herald: Farmers markets are a great place to buy healthy local produce and other foods, meet and support local farmers, and enjoy shopping in a fun environment. But shoppers should also pay attention to food safety when buying and using foods from farmers markets, says a University of Missouri Extension food safety specialist.

“Because the experience level of the vendors with food safety practices may vary greatly, the consumer needs to take a bit more active role in deciding what products to buy and from which vendors,” said Londa Nwadike, extension consumer food safety specialist for MU and Kansas State University. “Make sure the produce is clean, that it looks fresh, that it’s a nice, intact piece of produce. If you’re buying cut or peeled produce, make sure that it’s surrounded by ice or is being kept cold.”

Read the full article at the Houston Herald website