In which order should food be stored on a shelf?

The correct ordering for storing food on a shelf is based on food safety practices that minimize the risk of contamination from raw foods to ready-to-eat foods. Ready-to-eat foods, like cake, should always be stored above raw animal products such as ground beef and poultry to prevent any drips or cross-contamination that could occur if liquids from raw proteins leak onto other foods.

In this case, storing cake at the top is appropriate since it is a ready-to-eat item and poses no risk of contaminating the other foods. Ground beef, as a raw meat product, should be stored below the cake yet above poultry. This setup prevents any potential contamination from raw poultry, which is typically more prone to bacteria such as Salmonella.

Thus, the chosen order of cake, followed by ground beef, and finally poultry, effectively ensures food safety by keeping ready-to-eat foods on top, mitigating the risk of contamination from raw items below.