Food Safety and Handling

How to provide safe food?

**foodbourne – disease transmitted to people through food.

**outbreak – two or more people have the same symptoms and is investigated be local authorities
which is confirmed by laboratory analysis.

-Challenges to food safety.

Time and money, language and culture, literacy and education, pathogens, unapproved suppliers, high-
risk customers, staff turnover.

-Costs of foodborne illness to operation

Loss of customers & reputation, negative media, lowered staff morale, staff missing work, lawsuits &
legal fees, increased insurance premium, staff retraining.

3 Types of contaminants/hazards
1. Biological – pathogens(bacteria, virus, parasites, fungi)
2. Chemical – cleaners, sanitizers.
3. Physical – hair, dirt, hands

How Food Become Unsafe

5 risk factors for foodborne illness:
1. purchasing food from unsafe sources
2. Failing to cook food correctly
3. Holding food at incorrect temperatures
4. Using contaminated equipment
5. Practicing poor personal hygene.
Four main factors related to 5 risk factors.
 Time – temperature abuse – when food stayed too long at temperatures good for pathogen
growth like not cooled correctly, has not been stored at correct temperatures and not cooked or
reheated to kill pathogens.
 Cross-contamination – when pathogens are transferred from surface or food to another;
contaminated ingredients, ready-to-eat food, food handler that touched contaminated food,
contaminated cleaning clothes and food contact contaminated surfaces.
 Poor personal hygiene – when the food handler has not followed the SOP of a kitchen like failing
to wash hands, cough and sneeze on food, touch or scratch wounds and work while sick.
 Poor cleaning and sanitizing – Equipments and utensils are not washed, rinsed and sanitized,
food contact surfaces are only wiped but not sanitized, wiping cloths are not kept and sanitized
between uses, sanitizing solution is not prepared correctly.
Time Temperature Control
List of TCS food includes the following
 Milk & dairy
 Shell eggs
 Meat: beef, pork & lamb, Poultry: chicken & duck
 Fish
 Shellfish
 Cooked potatoes
 Rice, beans vegetables
 Soy and synthetic ingredients
 Sliced fruits
 Untreated oil-and-garlic mixtures

Ready to eat foods

Food that can be eaten without further:
 Preparation
 Washing
 Cooking

Population at high risk for foodborne illnesses

These people have high risk of getting a foodborne illness:
 Elderly people
 Pre-school age children
 People with compromised immune system
Keeping food safe
Focus on these measures:
 Controlling time and temperature
 Preventing cross-contamination
 Practicing personal hygiene
 Purchasing from approved, reputable suppliers
 Cleaning and sanitizing
Training and Monitoring
 Train staff
 Provide Initial and ongoing training
 Provide all staff with general food safety knowledge
 Provide specific food safety training
 Retrain staff regularly
 Monitor staff
 Document training
Gov’t Agencies related to food safety and Handling
 FDA(Food and Drug Administration)
 USDA(U.S. Department of agriculture)
 CDC(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
 State and Local Regulatory Authorities

4 Cs of hygiene
Cleaning
 Clean kitchen surfaces after preparing foods; try to 'clean as you go'.
 After handling raw meat, poultry, fish and other raw foods always wash hands, utensils and
surfaces thoroughly and before any contact with other food, especially cooked and ready-to-eat
foods.
Cooking
 Follow recipes and label instructions on cooking times and temperatures. Remember to pre-
heat the oven properly.
 Check food is piping hot before serving. Double check that sausages, burgers, pork and poultry
are cooked right through; they should not be 'rare' or pink in the middle and when pierced with
a knife any juices that run out of the meat should be clear, not bloody. Don't cook foods too far
in advance. Once cooked, keep foods covered and piping hot (above 63°C) until it's time to eat
them. When using the microwave stir foods and drinks and allow them to stand for a couple of
minutes to avoid hot or cold spots.

Cross contamination
 Food poisoning is often caused when harmful bacteria on one food are spread via hands or
kitchen utensils to cross-contaminate other foods. Good hygiene helps prevent this.
 Keep raw foods separate from cooked and ready-to-eat food at all times. In particular keep raw
meat, fish, poultry and other raw foods away from ready-to-eat foods such as salads, bread and
sandwiches. Never put cooked food on a plate which has previously held raw foods until it has
been thoroughly washed.
 Ideally use separate chopping boards for raw and cooked foods.
 Wash hands after handling raw foods and before touching other foods and utensils.

Chilling
 Do not put hot food directly into the fridge or freezer, let it cool sufficiently first; but remember
that cooling should be completed within one or two hours after cooking.
 To speed cooling divide foods into smaller portions, place in a wide dish and stand this in a
shallow tray of cold water.