Food safety hints

Food Safety Hints 1 DON'T PREPARE FOODs· TOO FAR IN ADVANCE 3 DON'T KEEP PERISHABLE FOODS WITHIN THE DANGER ZONE 5 DON'T COOK MEAT THAT IS NOT FULLY THAWED 16 2 DON'T UNDERCOOK MEAT INCLUDING POULTRY 4 DON'T UNDER-REHEAT ALREADY COOKED FOODS 6 DON'T ALLOW CONTAMINATION FROM RAW TO COOKED FOODS TEMPERATURE AND TIME FOOD-BORNE ILLNESS IS CAUSED MAINLY BY BACTERIA WHICH GROW IN FOOD AT CERTAIN TEMPERATURES. TO PREVENT THEIR GROWTH, FOOD HAS TO BE KEPT ABOVE 60 °C OR BELOW 1 0°C. A LARGE NUMBER OF FOOD-BORNE ILLNESS OUTBREAKS RESULT FROM FOOD BEING PREPARED SEVERAL HOURS BEFORE EATING What YOU can do to prevent food-borne illness Provided you stick to a small number of basic "rules" in the kitchen and the food-store, the risk of you or your family falling ill from diarrhoea or other diseases that are usually transmitted in what we eat can be kept to an absolut~ minimum . Firstly, ensure that food is cooked or re-heated long enough to kill all bacteria . Avoid direct or indirect contact between raw and cooked foods-on kitchen sur- faces, on the chopping board or in the food-store. Keep perishable foodstuffs out of the Danger Zone, which is clearly shown in our drawing on the right. Wash your hands before handling and cooking food, and particularly after using the toilet. Keep kitchen surfaces and food utensils spotlessly clean. They will be safer and will also be less likely to attract flies and other insects. Finally, make sure that any sores or cuts on your fingers and hands do not come in contact with food; they might spread infection to others. W oRLD HEALTH, March 1987