Food Studies Food Studies “ Being Food Safe”“ Being Food Safe”

What to keep in mind to prevent food contamination and hazards while preparing

food.

Areas of Food Hazards and Safety Hazards

Food Hazards

•Physical, Chemical & Biological

•Cross-contamination•Personal

Hygiene

Safety Hazards

•Working procedures

•Risk of Accidents

•Maintenance of equipment/tools

•Cleaning procedures

Affects

Influence

•High Risk Foods•Food Food PoisoningPoisoning

Safety hazards When preparing food, safety should be addressed

at all times. Simple things can help you to minimise the risk of accidents and food contamination.

Continued maintenance and regular checks of equipment (electric appliances, stove, etc.) and tools such as knives, can reduce the risk of injury to yourself, as well as the risk of cross-contamination and subsequent wastage of the food you are preparing.

Organised working procedures help you achieve the food preparation faster, reduce risks of mixing high risk foods and help you concentrate on what you are doing (less risk of cuts, burns, etc)

Safety hazards (cont.)

An accurate and detailed cleaning procedure helps you to minimise any chance of food contamination between products and unhygienic work surfaces and equipment/tools.

*Remember - Clean before, during and after food preparation.

Food Poisoning

•Is caused by a disease or illness of infectious or toxic nature, which is transferred by consuming contaminated food/drink.

•Campylobacter is the bacteria that most commonly causes food poisoning•Others include Salmonella and Listeria•Normally cause vomiting and diarrhea, however severe cases can result in death

•Factors increasing chance of food poisoning are•High risk foods handling without proper safety procedures •Cross-Contamination from raw to cook products•Length of time in danger temperature zone (5 – 65 C)•Amount of moisture (Bacteria needs moisture to multiply)

Food Hazards Physical, Chemical and Biological

Physical refers to “foreign objects” that are visually present in foods, usually caused by accident, poor inspection practices or bad hygiene. Eg. dirt, grease, chipped bones, etc.

Chemical are contaminants of a chemical origin which come in contact with the food by accident or omission. Detergents, cleaning products and insecticides are the common chemical products used in the kitchen. These products need to be stored properly to ensure that there is no chance of contamination.

Biological are micro-organisms that live in some foods or grow due to food spoilage and produce harm to humans. Eg. Salmonella in chicken, pre-made foods past their expiry date.

High Risk Foods

Certain foods are more likely to become contaminated than others. This means that you have to take more care when handling or working with them. These are foods that spoil easily, and if not handled properly can cause cross-contamination and consequent food poisoning.

Products such as raw meats, poultry and fish need to be refrigerated, if these products stay too long in the danger temperature zone (5-65 C) there is a good chance that bacteria could grow and the food could become contaminated.

Cross-Contamination

•Cross-contamination is refers to bacteria moving from one person, object, or product to our food or food preparation.

•Cross-contamination is influenced by:•People (hands, clothes etc)•Food (other ingredients)•Equipment (which could be unhygienic)•Work surfaces (not cleaned properly)

•It is easy to eliminate cross-contamination if you follow certain methods when preparing or working around food. These come under Personal Hygiene and Environmental Hygiene

Personal HygieneIt is extremely important to have high standards regarding

personal hygiene when preparing food.Wash your hands after: Touching raw products and before touching cooked foods. Touching/scratching any part of yourself (eg, nose, hair

etc) Sneezing, coughing or blowing your nose Touching any objects unrelated to the food preparation

process, that may not be hygienically clean (eg, telephone, door handles)

The use of gloves, caps or hair-bands help to improve hygiene during food preparation.

Resources:

http://www.homefoodsafety.org/pages/tips/index.jsp

http://www.safefood.net.au http://www.foodsafetymatters.gov.

au

http://www.medicinenet.com