Food Safety Issues about Street Foods

The food industry plays an important role in our daily life. The food industry is one of the most
consistently growing industries nowadays that focuses on costumer satisfaction. There are various types
of food establishments such as fine dining restaurants, fast food chain, and street food stalls. The street
food is more than just a convenience food source in the Philippines includes a wide variety of
inexpensive cuisine that you can buy from vendors and peddlers on the streets.

Street food is a significant part of urban food consumption for millions of low- and middle-income
consumers in urban areas on a daily basis. It is inexpensive, accessible meal. Yet, this is also one of the
most harmful health factors in human food consumption. It is the segment of the food industry that is
rarely regulated or reviewed for safety. It is common that cooking areas in street food industry are low
in terms of environmental and sanitary standards.

The Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), a line agency of DOST, warned the public that street
food stalls do not pass the same process as certified food establishments. Although the institute is not
discouraging street food vendors from selling their products, it suggested that vendors undergo training
in food handling to ensure safety.

Tacio (2012) stated that eating street foods maybe cheap, but there are also dangers that can cause
health problems. He reported a certain case of a woman in her 40s who suffered vomiting, scarred skin
and muscle pain after eating calamari. Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD) found out that there was a
huge amount of formalin, a preservative in the imported frozen squids. The contaminated calamari
caused the adverse effects in the woman's body.

Center for Disease Control and Prevention (2012), street vendors often do not with safe and hygiene
food handling practices, leading to a risk of a range food-borne illnesses.

A very important practice in food preparation safety is ensuring that raw and cooked foods are kept
separate. A common mistake is often caused by simply overlooking on proper storage and lack of
hygiene practices such as cleaning of hands or equipment. Specially in street foods where food storage
and refrigeration are often absent, the proper handling of prepared foods is very important to avoid
food spoilage that can lead to contamination and toxin formation. All cookware and utensils used in
street food preparation must be maintained and checked to ensure avoidance of any possible
contamination.

It is important to the street food vendors to know about food safety practices, hygiene, food
preparation and environmental exposure of their products. Food safety practices are specific food
handling controls related to the storage, food processing, packaging, transportation, disposal and recall
of food. Also, about the skills and knowledge of food handlers, the cleaning, sanitizing and maintenance
of the equipment within the premises are very important for the vendors to know, this will ensure that
food does not become unsafe or unsuitable. Vendors should have the knowledge to protect their food
to be able to offer quality food to their consumers.
Reference

Tacio, H., (2012) online journal research STREET FOOD: To eat or not to

Eat http://www.sunstar.com.ph/weekend-davao/street-food-eat-or-not-eat

Defensor, J., (2006) Dirty Dining (all about Philippine street food, safety &

nutrition) https://judefensor.wordpress.com/2012/05/11/dirty-dining-all-about-