Hey, MD!
Any more info on sickness from poorly stored rice and/or other grains? I am very interested in illnesses caused by food icks. I heard of one theory that some of the "fits" evinced by supposedly posessed folks in Salem, MA were possibly caused by a fungus in rye. Literally trippy!
Deedee

Here's a link that seems pretty descriptive (a .pdf file - use Acrobat Reader): Food Preparation
The basics message is copied below:
Wigan Environmental Health & Consumer Protection Department
Food Safety Guidance For Businesses
Preparation of Food in Advance
Catering premises cannot reasonably be expected to freshly prepare food from raw ingredients for each customer and must, therefore, prepare certain foods in advance of requirements. However, the practice of preparing large quantities of certain foods, such as sauces and rice, well in advance of requirements, cooling them too slowly or storing them at warm temperatures can result in a serious risk of food poisoning.
The purpose of this guidance is to highlight the problems associated with advance preparation of such foods and to give advice on methods of reducing or eliminating the risks of food poisoning.
What problems are there with rice?
A particular hazard associated with rice results from a bacteria called Bacillus cereus. This organism can produce two distinct forms of food poisoning, the more common form of which produces nausea and vomiting between one and five hours after consumption.
Bacillus cereus also has a dormant form, known as spores, which will survive normal cooking and will produce harmful toxins (poisons) if the food is not cooled quickly and refrigerated. The toxins are highly resistant to heat and so would not be killed off by further heating.
How can I avoid food poisoning?
Rice should not be prepared for more than one day's use at a time. Cooked rice should be served at once or cooled, within 1½ hours, by means of blast chilling or the use of shallow trays and then refrigerated at 5 º C or below. Preparation of fried rice should be from refrigerated rice. Cooked rice should not be kept at room temperature. Rice salads should always be prepared from cooled rice to minimise risks of food poisoning. RE-HEATING LEFTOVER RICE IS STRONGLY DISCOURAGED.
What about sauces?
It is common practice for commercial caterers to prepare sauces well in advance, to keep them warm during the serving of meals, to allow them to cool at room temperature
and to re-heat any leftover sauce later. All these practices have the potential to cause food poisoning since sauces often contain meat stock, eggs or cream which provide an ideal medium in which bacteria can grow. This
growth is accelerated when the sauce is just kept at a warm temperature and is likely to occur if the sauce is constantly heated and allowed to cool to room temperature.
How can I avoid problems with sauces?
The risk of food poisoning from sauces can be avoided by :
-only preparing small quantities of sauce
-keeping the sauce hot, i.e. above 62º C
-never "topping-up" any sauce pots with new ingredients
-avoiding contamination of the sauce once it has been produced
Remember
-The cost of discarding unused rice or sauce is minimal compared to the damage which could be caused to your business by a food poisoning incident.
If you would like further advice or information on this subject or on any matter relating to food hygiene please contact the Commercial Section of the Environmental
Health & Consumer Protection Department at either:The New Town Hall, Library Street, Wigan or The Town Hall, Leigh
Wigan, Lancashire, England
(Northwest England - by Liverpool and Manchester
Wigan Council Website
[ July 24, 2002: Message edited by: MD ]

Very informative MD. Thanks for the info. I had no idea about the possible problems from rice. My Husband and one of my daughters, cannot seem to have one meal without rice. And my daughter is susceptible to stomach problems. Thanks again.

Thanks, MD! Most informative. Who would have thought? I suppose that's ANOTHER reason not to drop by the burrito place on the corner!
Deedee

Doesn't Acidophilus help fight the bacteria in food?

Acidophilus is a "friendly" bacteria that helps keep your GI tract functioning smoothly. I supplement with dairy free veg acidophilus capsules and eat cultured yogurt to help with a variety of issues. But I don't think any of the friendly cultures will protect you against food poisoning. They might ameliorate it somewhat if you have a mild case, but often people's natural defenses are shot (by illness or previous use of antibiotics).