Food Safety and Hygiene broadly mean taking essential precautions throughout the food chain, to ensure that food is safe for human consumption. This requires precautions to be taken at every level from farm to fork.
Storage: To maintain quality of food, store it in a manner that it remains fresh when used in different recipes.
Dry goods, such as sugar or flour should be stored in airtight containers to keep them clean and dry. Such containers when placed into a pantry or reside on a kitchen counter are relatively safe from humidity and extreme temperatures.
Perishable food items must be stored properly in a freezer in order to preserve them for later use. Freezing helps to slow the process of decay, thus minimising the chances for food poisoning, when for example meat is used at a later date.
Prepared food should not be left on the table or counter, but stored in airtight containers in the refrigerator or freezer. Cooked refrigerated food typically does not last longer than a week. It is therefore necessary to check and verify that it is still safe to eat.
Cooking: Practicing proper food safety and hygiene protocols, while cooking or preparing food, reduces the risk of illnesses.
Handling & Transportation: Handling & transportation of raw or prepared food should conform to best hygiene practices with regard to storage, segregation, temperature control and so on that have been mentioned above.
Be Safe than Sorry - Simple Rules to follow for Safer Food
-Wash hands properly & frequently with antiseptic soap before & after handling food
-Wash & clean utensils with good quality detergent after every use
-Use clean hand gloves and cap while cooking
-Purchase food commodities from a trusted source and in case of packaged products check the “Best Before” date and packaging defects
-Keep food on clean surfaces, e.g. cutting board, knives, implements, equipment, etc., should be thoroughly washed & cleaned before and in between two usages
-Isolate raw meats & fish from other food items during storage in refrigerator and even before cooking. Make sure they are sealed in containers and located in such a place where they cannot drip down onto other stored food
-Do not allow cooked food and raw food to come into contact with each other
-Maintain food at proper temperature, for the correct time to kill any bacteria or pathogens. The only way to kill food-borne pathogens is by thoroughly cooking the food. Temperature In between 50C to 630C is considered as ‘Danger Zone’ as at that temperature bacteria thrive and multiply very fast. Recommended cooking temperatures, critical points, SOPs, and times for different foods may be found online
-Do not leave foods out on the counter to thaw, and certainly do not run them under warm water, which can cause bacterial growth. Instead, thaw frozen foods in the refrigerator, run them under cold water, immediately before cooking
Compromising with the simple rules mentioned above could impose risk of cross contamination and food poisoning, which can be dangerous or even deadly.
Hygiene Testing
Several food hygiene tests and a thorough evaluation of food handling procedures, help to determine whether all applicable guidelines and regulations are being followed. A food hygiene test is typically performed by a trained professional, certified lab, known food inspector/officer/auditor, to ensure that a restaurant or facility meets the local and regional safety requirements for food handling.
Training courses are typically offered by different institutes, study centres and also online through distance-learning programmes. Envirocare Labs under its Center for Continual Education provides regular training on Food Safety Hygiene, basics of Good Hygiene and Manufacturing practices, HACCP and FSMS 22000.
Testy Way is a Healthy Way
Biochemical processes taking place inside food tell us what is safe to eat and help determine if the quality is consistent or not. Scientific developments have allowed a better understanding of the nutritional qualities of foods and their health implications. This has led consumers to become more discriminating in food matters, who now expect that domestic and imported foods will meet basic quality and safety standards and requirements related to food hygiene, labelling and certification, use of food additives, limits for pesticide residues and so on
Quality and safety of food has to be ensured throughout the food production, processing, storage and distribution chain. This being a multi-sectoral activity, its objectives cannot be reached without the active cooperation of producers, traders, industry and government, as also the involvement of the scientific community. Thus, involvement of various recognised labs such as Envirocare Labs to generate analytical data helps in the development and successful operation of the food control system as per regulatory safety standards. While it may not be economically feasible for an FBO to set up and operate a fullfledged food testing laboratory, outsourcing laboratory testing to accredited, competent & authorised labs is a viable & preferred option.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has been established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, as a statutory body for laying down science-based standards for articles of food and regulating manufacturing, processing, distribution, sale and import of food so as to ensure safe and wholesome food for human consumption. Chapter 2-Food Product Standards of FSSR 2011 elaborates 13 food categories and gives the guideline values for the quality and safety of various raw materials and processed food. As per the regulations - mentioned in Schedule II, Annexure 3-Conditions of Licensing, Clause No. 12, every food business operator needs to get their food and water tested from NABL accredited / FSSAI empanelled lab. Envirocare Labs is one of the first private ‘Indian’ laboratories to be recognised by the Authority and has been working towards safe food since past 33 years.
It is important to remember ‘What Tastes Good Should First Test Good!’
The popular drink ‘kuluki sherbet’ is under the scanner of the Food Safety Department.
