Home cooks falling short on kitchen hygiene

Despite high confidence, 75% of home cooks risk spreading food poisoning bacteria, warns Safefood

Dublin, Ireland – May 13, 2026 – New survey from Safefood reveals significant gaps in kitchen hygiene practices among Irish home cooks. Launched today as part of its Clean As You Go campaign, Safefood is urging busy households to adopt simple, practical habits to prevent the spread of harmful bacteria and safeguard family health.

“People in Ireland feel confident in keeping their kitchen clean but this survey shows that confidence does not always reflect what is happening in practice."

– Joanne Uí Chrualaoich, CEO, Safefood

The new survey shows that while 90% of adults feeling confident in their kitchen cleaning, only 25% consistently follow key cleaning practices. This perception-practice gap creates a silent risk of cross-contamination in everyday food preparation, further supported by 63% of adults underestimating that food poisoning bacteria can survive on surfaces - like phones and worktops - for more than 24 hours.

Key findings from the Safefood survey highlight areas of particular concern:

Dishcloths are a hidden hazard as nearly two-thirds of Irish adults (64%) say they are not replacing dishcloths and sponges at least every 2 days. Damp cloths are prime breeding grounds for harmful bacteria, posing a direct risk of spreading germs.
With over a third (37%) of people frequently using mobile phones while cooking, a concerning 74% are failing to wash hands both before and after touching their device - creating a direct pathway for bacteria transfer to food or other surfaces.
Over 4 in 10 people say they don’t wash their hands thoroughly with soap and water after handling raw food risking cross-contamination.

"People in Ireland feel confident in keeping their kitchen clean but this survey shows that confidence does not always reflect what is happening in practice," says Joanne Uí Chrualaoich, CEO of Safefood. “Everyday habits, particularly the use of mobile phones during food preparation, are creating risks that can lead to food poisoning illness. We know from our previous Smart Devices research that harmful bacteria can survive on the screen of a smart device for more than 24 hours. As our advertising shows, if you could see harmful bacteria spread - you would Clean As You Go."

This campaign is about showing people how easily harmful bacteria can spread on to food, utensils, surfaces and even your loved ones. Clean as you go to stop food poisoning bacteria from spreading.

– Trish Twohig, Director of Food Safety, Safefood

Trish Twohig, Director of Food Safety at Safefood, adds, " With almost three quarters of people unsure how long food poisoning bacteria can survive on surfaces, the findings highlight ongoing risks around cross-contamination in the kitchen. This campaign is about showing people how easily harmful bacteria can spread on to food, utensils, surfaces and even your loved ones."

The Safefood "Clean as You Go" campaign shows how easily harmful bacteria spread from raw food to hands, surfaces, utensils and mobile phones during food preparation. It aims to encourage home cooks to follow these steps to keep your kitchen clean and protect your family:

Always wash hands thoroughly with warm water and soap after handling utensils or raw meat, poultry, fish, or eggs; dry with a clean towel.
Replace dishcloths or sponges for clean ones at least every 2 days. Dirty ones are a major source of bacteria.
Wash chopping boards thoroughly after contact with raw foods. Never flip a board.
Clean kitchen surfaces with hot soapy water immediately after preparing raw food.
If using your phone during cooking, clean your hands thoroughly before and after touching it.

For more information and practical tips on preventing cross-contamination and 'Clean as You Go' habits, please visit www.safefood.net/food-safety/cross-contamination.

ENDS

For further information or to request photos or an interview please contact:

Wilson Hartnell PR
Deirbhile Brennan
Email: [email protected]
Mobile: 086 457 6093

Heidi Morgan
Email: [email protected]
Mobile: 087 297 2046

Safefood
Hayley Linehan
Email: [email protected]
Mobile: 087 406 9110 (Hayley)

Editors notes

Clean As You Go survey

Conducted in April 2026, this nationally representative survey of 1,038 adults across the island of Ireland was delivered by Bounce Insights.

Q: How confident are you that your usual kitchen cleaning prevents the spread of food poisoning bacteria?

32% - Very confident
58% - Fairly confident
8% - Not very confident
1% - Not at all confident

Q: Which of the following kitchen hygiene practices do you sometimes miss or forget? (Select all that apply)

27% - Wash my hands after handling raw food (meat or veg)
26% - Clean surfaces after contact with raw food
25% - Wash chopping boards after preparing raw food
39% - Clean or replace dishcloths or sponges regularly
43% - Wash my hands after using my phone or device
31% - Wash my hands before using my phone or device (after preparing raw food)
25% - I do all of these, every time

Q: When preparing food, how often do you wash your hands immediately after handling raw food?

75% - Always
18% - Often
6% - Sometimes
1% - Rarely
0% - Never

Q: When you wash your hands immediately after handling raw food, how do you wash them?

59% - Wash thoroughly with soap and water
31% - Wash quickly with soap and water
10% - Rinse with water only (no soap)
1% - I do not usually wash my hands after handling raw food

Q: After preparing raw food, what do you usually do to clean kitchen surfaces?

43% - Clean them straight away using hot soapy water
30% - Clean them straight away with a quick wipe
10% - Antibacterial spray or other
17% - Clean them later during tidy-up
8% - I don’t always clean surfaces after preparing raw food
1% Not sure

Q: How often do you clean or replace your kitchen dishcloths or sponges?

18% - Daily
18% - Every second day
35% - Weekly
19% - Less often than weekly
10% - When they look or smell dirty.
0% - Never

Q: How often do you use your phone or another device while preparing food?

11% - Always
26% - Often
32% - Sometimes
23% - Rarely
8% - Never

Q: If you use your phone or device while preparing food, when do you usually wash your hands?

24% - Before touching my phone
23% - After touching my phone
26% - Both before and after
23% - Rarely
3% - Never

Q: How long do you think food poisoning bacteria can survive on surfaces such as phones or worktops?

7% - Up to 10 minutes
12% - Up to 1 hour
13% - Up to 6 hours
21% - Up to 24 hours
27% - More than 24 hours
19% - Don’t know

Smart devices in the kitchen research

This research on smart devices found that mobile phone or smart devices used while cooking can become contaminated with harmful bacteria during food preparation. It showed that Salmonella and E. coli can survive on smart device surfaces for more than 24 hours, highlighting the importance of hand hygiene and cleaning during meal preparation.