Health Is It Safe To Eat Leftovers Cold? The federal government’s consumer-facing food safety pages — including FoodSafety.gov and websites for the FDA, the CDC, and the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service — contain pretty much all the information you need as a home cook to avoid food poisoning. Most of it comes down to basic concepts like the “four simple steps” shown on the homepage at FoodSafety.gov: clean, separate, cook, and chill.