PAMBAYANG DALUBHASAAN NG MARILAO

Abangan Norte, Marilao, Bulacan

College of Hospitality and Tourism Management

HT-RMAS1
WEEK 10
Prepared by: Mr. Dexter Agsalud

Physical Hazards

Physical hazards are either foreign materials unintentionally introduced to food products (e.g., metal
fragments in mince, meat) or naturally occurring objects (e.g., bones in fish) that pose threats to the consumer. A
physical hazard can become included in a food product at any stage of production. In physical hazards, a foreign
object that causes injury or harm is easily identified and is the most frequent reason for consumer complaints.
Statistically, physical hazards may not be as important as other food hazards. However, they can be considered
obnoxious, irritating, unsightly, and inconvenient, and can cause the commercial food establishment to lose their
customers.
Sources for such contaminants include raw materials, badly maintained facilities and equipment, improper
production procedures, and poor employee practices. Examples include:

• inadequate removal or contamination during primary production, including harvesting, sorting,

processing, and transport. (bones not fully removed from fish or meat, stones and insects gathered up
with fresh produce during harvesting, metal from farm machinery contaminating fresh produce during
harvesting, inedible parts of fresh produce not completely removed during sorting and packing, packaging
material parts, such as nails from pallets)
• introduced during processing and handling by food businesses. ( personal items of food handlers like
jewelry or pens, food handler wound dressings, pieces of poorly maintained equipment or fittings like
shards of rust, or nuts and bolts, pieces of packaging materials like broken glass or plastic cap, insects and
pests like cockroaches or bird feathers and tools and miscellaneous items such as paper clips, staples or
cable) ties).
• intentional – deliberate contamination, which may occur either at the food business or at the place of
sale.

Physical Hazards Risk in Food

Hard or sharp objects are potential physical hazards and can cause cuts to the mouth or throat, damage
to the intestines, and damage to teeth or gums. The presence of physical hazards in food can trigger a food recall,
affecting the brand name of the company and product.

Main Types of Physical Hazards in Food

Food eggshell, fruit and vegetable peels, inedible seeds, and fish scales
Glass light bulbs, glass containers, and glass food containers
Metal metal from equipment, such as splinters, blades, broken needles, fragments from
worn utensils, staples
Plastic the material used for packaging, gloves worn by food handlers, utensils used for
cleaning equipment, and parts of tools used to remove processed food from
 PAMBAYANG DALUBHASAAN NG MARILAO
Abangan Norte, Marilao, Bulacan
College of Hospitality and Tourism Management

equipment
Stone field crops, such as peas and beans, are most likely to contain small stones that are
picked up during harvesting, concrete structures and floors in food processing
facilities can also be a source of small stones.
Wood wood structures and wooden pallets used to store or transport ingredients or food
products
Cloth fragments of rags, hot pads, and sponges
Insects and fur, hair, fecal pellets, eggs, wings, legs, nesting materials, and discarded seed shells
Rodents
Personal effects food handlers themselves, includes hair, nails, jewelry, bandages, and cigarette butts

Minor Injuries Related to Physical Hazard

• choking – can prevent using Heimlich maneuver, (CPR) cardiopulmonary resuscitation

• shallow cut / laceration - mouth
• damage to teeth or gums
• small splinters – from tiny pieces of wood, a metal fragment, glass, or thin fish bones embedded, usually in
the finger can be painful and annoying.
• infection
• damage to the intestines

Choking could be life-threatening and is considered the most serious consequence, even resulting in the filing
of legal suits. In severe situations, physical hazards can even cause death, in which financial obligations by the
party involved would be tremendous.

Detection and Elimination System for Physical Hazards

 PAMBAYANG DALUBHASAAN NG MARILAO
Abangan Norte, Marilao, Bulacan
College of Hospitality and Tourism Management

1. Metal detectors are used to detect metal in food products. They should be set up to reject products from the
food production line if the metal were to be detected. Proper maintenance should be given to this equipment
to ensure they are always accurate and does not produce false positives.
2. Magnets can be used with metal detectors on food production lines to attract and remove metal from
products.
3. X-ray machines can be used on food production lines to identify hazards such as stones, bones, and hard
plastics, as well as metal.
4. Food radar systems transmit low-power microwaves through food products to identify foreign bodies such as
metals, plastics, bones, kernels, and organic materials in food on production lines.

Preventing Common Physical Hazards

Minimize the risk of physical contamination of food products by:

Prevention Detection Removal Investigate and implement
corrective actions
• inspect raw materials and food ingredients • educate your staff on • routine washing of • determine the source
for field contaminants the importance of fresh produce to of the contaminant and
• check that product specifications for raw being alert for the remove soil, insects, take steps to prevent
ingredients cover physical hazards presence of physical and plant material future occurrences.
• keep a record of physical contamination of hazards • routine sieving of
raw ingredients and change suppliers if • where necessary, use powders to remove any
it becomes a frequent issue sorting or inspection objects
• have an adequate pest-control program lines dedicated to • have pre-printed
• prohibit staff from wearing jewelry or separating “Reject – not safe”
taking personal items into food handling contaminants from labels ready for
areas ingredients contaminated products
• monitor the use of wound dressings on • rotate staff on that may need to be
hands, protect with disposable gloves inspection duty separated and
• avoid purchasing equipment that may frequently disposed of
become a physical hazard (glass • use automated • have dedicated
thermometers) detection equipment, disposal bins or hold
• modify equipment, fixtures, and fittings such as a metal areas for rejected
(redesign equipment to avoid falling parts detector items
into food • have a glass breakage
• maintain sufficient lighting in work areas procedure.
and dining rooms to make it more
conducive for identifying any foreign
object that may have been accidentally
added to the food
• have a maintenance schedule for
equipment
• do not store non-food items in food
packaging
• set up an effective detection and
elimination system for physical hazards in
the facility

I. REFERENCES
• Alvarez, Helen U. 2018. Food Safety , Sanitation and Hygiene. Mind shapers Co., Inc.
• Brown, Amy. 2017. Understanding Food Preparation and Principles. Cengage Learning
• Lavine, Karen. 20015. Survival Guide for Culinary Art Professional. Cengage Learning
• Payne-Palacio, June, Theis, Monica. 2008. Foodservice Management, Tenth Edition. Pearson Education South
Asia PTE. LTD.