September may be food-safety awareness month in Iowa, but that doesn’t mean a crackdown on diners and short-order staff. Spokesman David Werning in the state department of inspections and appeals says after all, most meals we eat are still prepared at home.Most food-borne illnesses spread through germs are because we didn’t wash our hands, or properly heat or cool foods. It’s easy to recommend keeping food cold when you’re near the fridge, but how about the school lunch those kids will carry around for hours before they eat it?Werning says there are ways around that, like freezing a juice box that can be placed next to a sandwich in the lunchbox to keep it cool. While you might still want to skip the egg salad, Werning says there are plenty of ways to give variety to a brown-bag lunch.Foods like crackers, packaged pudding and fruit are “shelf stable” even if not refrigerated. Agencies from the F-D-A to the Iowa Egg Council are adding their endorsement to Food Safety Education Month.