FOOD SAFETY is critically important in the food industry. Food should always be kept, prepared and sold in a safe and hygienic environment. Food safety is important in order to satisfy customers, maintain neat kitchen, utensils, equipment, restaurant etc.
Dirty and unkept restaurant or kitchen can create bad impressions, take your customers away, breed parasites and bacteria, it can block appetites and lead to several disease that are harmful to the body.
Food safety as a discipline is defined as a scientific method of handling, preparing and storing food in ways to prevent foodborne illnesses. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), safe food is essential to human health and wellbeing. Only food that is safe can be traded.
For food safety, every step is important; from which food to store in what section of the fridge or freezer to what temperature and how many days it should stay, in what condition is food safe to eat, ways to handle and store food etc., they are all important.
There are five known steps to food safety (according to WHO):
1. Choose safe raw materials: When buying raw materials, choose adequate quantity to reduce the problems of large storage. Buy from reliable suppliers, buy ones that are free from abnormal odours etc.
2. Keep hands and utensils clean: Separate cooking equipment and utensils into specific process areas, make sure the utensils are neat and remember to wash before and after use.
3. Separate raw and cooked food: Raw foods should be stored differently and kept in a fitting temperature. Cooked food should be separated from raw foods.
4. Cook thoroughly: Inadequate cooking of food can cause food borne diseases, so it is advisable to cook food thoroughly.
5. Keep food at or below 4°C or above 60°C: Food should be stored at 4°C or below or at 63°C or above to kill the growth of food poisoning bacteria.
Importance of keeping food safe:
1. Earn a good reputation
2. Avoid customer complaints
3. Improve productivity
4. Boost business
5. Self assurance
6. Avoid food poisoning incident etc.
BACTERIA AND PARASITE
• BACTERIA
Bacteria grows in food, especially foods rich in moisture and protein, which are referred to as high risk foods. Bacteria grows under proper temperatures but double every 10 to 20 minutes. Most food poisoning cases are caused by improper temperature control which leads to bacterial food poisoning and food-borne diseases.
FOOD BORNE ILLNESS
Food borne illness is a type of illness caused by food contaminated with Bacteria, Viruses, Parasites or Toxins. Some symptoms of this illness include pain in the abdomen or rectum, chills, fatigue, loss of appetite, sweating etc (knowledge graph).
Food poisoning and food infections are the two types of food borne illness.
• Food infection: is an illness caused by germs in the food.
• Food poisoning: is an illness caused by germ produced poison.
The most common form of food poisoning and infections is SALMONELLA. Salmonella germs live in the intestinal track of people and can be passed on by eating food which has not been properly prepared. Symptoms according to the WHO can be fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhoea.
Another dangerous bacteria that can cause serious danger to health is LISTERIA, which can lead to miscarriage or death of a new born baby. It is found in unpasteurized dairy products and ready-to-eat foods.
Common causes of bacterial food poisoning and food borne diseases include use of unsafe food source, inadequate thawing of food before cooking, improper storage of food, consumption of raw food and left overs etc.
• PARASITES
Parasites are organisms that can live on where they derive benefit from. It lives and feeds at the expense of its host.
There are two main types of food parasites:
• PROTOZOA: This is a single cell organism, they cannot multiply in food but in humans. Example is TOXOPLASMA GONDII, it is found in raw and undercooked meat. GIARDIA LAMBLIA, found in contaminated water.
• HELMINTHS (WORMS): They are multiple cell organisms and they cannot multiply in humans. Examples; flukes (fasciola hepatica) found in watercress e.g. round worms. Trichinella spiralis found in pork.
• THAWING:
Thawing is the process of gradually melt, dissolve or soften frozen foods, especially meats, poultry, seafood.
According to the academy of nutrition and dietetics, there are three safe methods to thaw frozen foods:
1. In the refrigerator:
• Plan ahead as most foods take time to thaw.
• Place frozen food on a plate, or in a container, to catch any juices that may leak.
• Keep the item that's thawing on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator.
• Any food that's been thawed in the refrigerator can be refrozen, either before or after cooking.
2. In cold water:
• This is a faster thawing method; however, it could take a couple of hours depending on weight.
• Put the frozen item in a watertight plastic bag or container.
• Submerge the item in cold water.
• Cook immediately after thawed.
• You must fully cook all foods thawed with this method, before refreezing them.
3. In the microwave:
• Remove any plastic or outer wrapping on the package.
• Place in a microwave-safe container and cover.
• Follow your microwave instructions to defrost.
• Cook immediately after thawing.
• You must fully cook all foods thawed in the microwave before refreezing.
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RandomPersonal Hygiene and Sanitation, Cooking Techniques, Fruits and Vegetables, Dieting, Pregnancy and Blood type RH, Recipes, Food Terms and Time Table. All in one book!
