THIS is why self-catering is a bad idea ...

This can also happen with businesses....

Great example!

@Eileen Yes, but businesses have liability insurance. If you self cater and someone gets ill, they can sue you.

@Eileen, sure it can happen with businesses, but businesses have insurance in case it does whereas individuals don't

Oh man! Food poisoning sucks. I can't imagine doing that to my guests.

A wedding I went to was a potluck, something must have been bad because almost everyone that attended the wedding was out of commission due to food poisoning. We had thought about self catering but after that experience we decided there was no way we would attempt that.

Not saying self catering is a good idea but silly to point to this as the reason when the cause is not even known yet. How about never hosting any dinner parties at your home because you can get sued?

I have to agree with Eileen...in all honesty, after reading some of the vehemence regarding self-catering or potluck weddings (specifically regarding the food-borne illness issue) I started to wonder if anyone on these boards ever goes to a friend's house for dinner, a birthday party at someone's home, a cook-out/barbecue, a work potluck luncheon, a family reunion, etc...not saying that with any sarcasm, honest to God it's crossed my mind.

It's all calculated risk. Articles like this are pretty reactionary.

@Eileen when I host dinner parties at my house I do the cooking or get it catered from a reputable establishment. I also have enough home insurance to cover a claim made against me

@Abbie I do not eat food from just anyone. If you do not display sanitary practices I do not trust you in the kitchen. I will bring a dish i make or buy and to share and eat that. I do not care if it is a family or friend

Bookmarking this.

@Eileen, there is a difference between cooking something for a chili cook off and hosting a dinner party in your home.

If it's in your home, guests can choose for themselves based upon the cleanliness of your house if they want to eat food from your kitchen or not. Also, dinner parties often include just a few close friends or family not a bunch of acquaintances.

At a cook off or potluck it's food brought in from kitchens you have never seen by people who may or may not have the best hygiene. Also, for larger parties people make bigger portions which are more susceptible to something going wrong with temperature and/or handling.

Businesses have insurance, have training, have standards. And businesses stay in business by not killing people....

This is why most venues won't even let you cater your own wedding. The timeframe is far different than having six people to dinner.

But there will always be people who come here and say, "this is how we always do events in my familiy" and no amount of arguments for food safety will dissuade them from having potluck or self catering.

But @ Asta, your scenario doesn't account for undercooking meat, for example, or contamination from raw meat to things like other non-cooked foods...

I get it, to a certain extent. It only takes one bout of food poisoning to make someone say "Nuh-uh, never again!" I guess I just find the reactions on this board a bit over the top given there are so many instances in life where you might partake in food cooked by others. So I guess if folks just avoid those instances all together, each to their own, I suppose.

The first lesson my mother instilled in me was you don't eat from just anybody cause people are nasty. I carry those words of wisdom with me everyday

@Abbie, no I do not eat at bake sales, in homes of people I don't know well (unless the food is store bought), or potlucks (unless the food is store bought or cooked by someone that I know well). I know my family well and trust the cleanliness of their kitchens, so I have no issue with eating at family functions. Also, cooking for 20 people is drastically different from cooking for 50 or more people. None of my family functions are ever larger than 20.

@Keisha, my mom taught me the same thing!

Abbie, I usually have the opposite thought when I see self catering posts with people defending it... "like damn, people will just eat anything anywhere, huh?"

No snark. I legitimately don't eat at potlucks. I will typically bring something of my own to eat. As for family functions...well that depends on what family member is cooking.

Yeah, sorry: huge difference in having a few friends for dinner and mass producing food that will be served hours (or days) after being prepared.

Businesses have insurance, policies and guidelines to ensure quality of the food. Aunt Edna making 200 portions of whatever doesn't.

Wow! it's also hard to get everything done. This could happen anywhere. @keisha LOL so true!

People always think they know what they're doing, but they usually don't. My aunt self-catered her wedding and swore she knew how to temp check items and how to keep things cold or hot as needed. I really think she felt like she could handle it. We all got sick with food poisoning and it was awful. Cooking at home for a few people is very different than serving dozens or over 100 people. Self-catering is dangerous.

When cooking for large groups, the facility matters. A standard home kitchen is very different than an industrial kitchen. Once you start having to improvise, food safety suffers.

Eek can you imagine if you self catered your wedding and that happened?? I would hate to be responsible for so many people getting so sick and sounds like it would be a huge liability! Definitely not the best idea.