Personal Hygiene and Food Workers
By Christian Desroches, Deb Canada
The intention of food safety is to prevent
food poisoning, the transmission of disease through food, and to maintain the
wholesomeness of the food product through all stages of processing.
In the private home where food is prepared
for a small number of people, the results of food contamination are limited.
However, contamination in a restaurant or institutional kitchen can result in a
large number of people being affected.
Food handlers have a moral and legal
responsibility to keep high standards of personal cleanliness to ensure that
they do not contaminate food.
HAND WASHING
The hands of food workers are often in
direct contact with food, and these are a primary cause of contamination. Food
handlers must wash their hands regularly throughout the working day and they
must wash properly, not just a finger tinkle under tepid tap water.
A proper wash includes a pre-rinse, 10 to
15 seconds of scrubbing to loosen soil and microbes, rinsing and thorough
drying (preferably with disposable paper towels). The common practice of
continually wiping the hands on a cloth held at the waist should cease, as this
only serves to re-contaminate them, not clean them.
Food workers should wash their hands (or if
not visibly soiled, use an approved alcohol hand rub):
-
Before handling any food or
equipment.
- After handling raw food,
especially meat and chicken, before they handle other food.
- Immediately after going to the
toilet, blowing their nose, coughing, sneezing, smoking, eating, combing or
touching their hair, handling waste food or rubbish, and handling cleaning
equipment.
JEWELRY AND PERFUME
Food handlers should not wear jewelled
rings or brooches, earrings or watches. These items can harbour dirt and
bacteria, and are impossible to decontaminate. Aside from being socially
frowned upon, strong perfume can taint foods, especially those with a high fat
content.
CUTS AND SORES
Cuts and sores can provide an ideal place
for bacterial growth. To prevent contamination of food by harmful bacteria and
blood, these wounds must be completely covered by waterproof dressings –
preferably coloured to help locate them if they come loose – and suitable
gloves. Waterproof dressings will also help prevent cuts from going septic. If
a cut or sore or area of infected skin cannot be completely covered with a
waterproof dressing, the worker should not be handling food products.
NOSE, MOUTH AND EARS
Approximately 40 per cent of adults carry
Staphylococci bacteria in their nose or mouth. Coughing and sneezing can propel
the bacteria a surprisingly long distance. Using a disposable single-use tissue
is preferable to handkerchiefs. Infectious discharges from the ears, eyes and
nose may also contaminate food and food workers should see their doctor if
suffering from any of these infections.
To prevent contamination of food from the
nose, mouth and ears, food handlers must not:
- Cough or sneeze over or around
food.
- Pick or scratch their nose.
- Taste food with their fingers
or an unwashed utensil.
- Blow into glasses to polish
them or bags to open them.
PROTECTIVE CLOTHING
All food handlers should wear clean,
washable, protective clothing, preferably without external pockets. Protective
clothing must be suitable for the work being carried out and should completely
cover ordinary clothes. It is worn to protect the food from the risk of
contamination – dust, pet hairs, wool fibres, etc. – not just to keep private
clothing clean.
GENERAL HEALTH
Food handlers should be in good health – from
oral hygiene to general fitness. Any food worker suffering from diarrhea,
vomiting or a food-borne infection MUST be excluded from work, and can only
return after they have been completely free of symptoms for two days. And, they
must stay away again if any symptoms return.
Food workers with skin infections, sores,
heavy colds and ear or eye discharge, must also stay away from work until the
symptoms have gone.
The personal hygiene of food workers is
paramount. There are frequent reports of foodborne illness caused by poor
personal care standards of a single kitchen worker that have caused discomfort,
expense and, in some cases, death to many people. It isn’t complicated and it
doesn’t take much time even in a very busy kitchen. Hand washing and the other
factors that make up personal hygiene are non-negotiable.
