More and more Americans are becoming concerned about ensuring the food they eat is safe. What can you do to make sure your chicken is safe to eat? How can you prevent food poisoning? Below are tips from the American Dietetic Association and the ConAgra Foods Foundation that will help you get your poultry safely from the grocery aisle to the kitchen table.

• Choose packaged chicken that looks pink, not gray or yellow.
• Make sure packaging is tightly sealed and is very cold to the touch.
• Pick up the poultry last and ask to have it bagged separately from other groceries.
• Check the "sell-by" date and if it has passed, don't buy it.

• Make sure the refrigerator temperature is set to 40° F or below
• Always use poultry by the "sell-by" date unless you are freezing it
• Wrap poultry in freezer wrap or tightly sealed freezer bags and date it
• Frozen poultry can be kept for nine months to a year in a freezer set below 0° F
• Cooked chicken or turkey should be eaten or frozen within 3 to 4 days

• Wash hands thoroughly for 20 seconds before, during and after handling raw poultry
• Use two cutting boards to avoid cross-contamination
• Use one for raw meats and the other for fruits and vegetables
• Color-coded cutting boards can help you remember which is which
• Refer to the Safe Food Handling label on the package
• The label gives proper cooking and storage procedures
• Defrost poultry in the refrigerator or in the microwave--never on the counter
• Use a meat thermometer to ensure doneness of your poultry
• Cook poultry breasts to 170° F
• Cook whole turkey, chicken to 180° F
• Cook ground chicken, turkey to 165° F
• Don't leave chicken unrefrigerated for more than two hours