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Table of contentsI. Providing Safe Food.2II. Forms of Contamination.6III. The Safe Food Handler.11IV. Introduction to Flow of Food.14V. Purchasing, Receiving and Storage.16VI. Preparation.19VII. Service.24VIII. Food Management Safety Systems.26IX. Sanitary Facilities and Pest Management.29X. Cleaning and Sanitizing.33Chapter 1: Providing Safe FoodI. The Dangers and Prevention of Foodborne IllnessA. Food Safety Basics:1. Recognize the importance of food safety2. Recognize the risks associated with high-risk populations3. Avoid potential hazards to food safety4. Understand how food becomes unsafe5. Follow the keys to food safetyB. What a foodborne illness is and how it occurs1. A foodborne illness is a disease that is transferred to people by food. An illness is considered an outbreak when: a. Two or more people have the same symptoms after eating the same food. b. An investigation is conducted by state and local regulatory authorities. c. The outbreak is confirmed by laboratory analysis. 2. The elderly, children and people with suppressed immune systems are most likely to be affected by food borne illnesses.3. Foods that support the growth of microorganisms are called potentially hazardous foods. With the 2007 Food Code these microorganisms will be referred to as TCS foods. This is an abbreviation for Temperature Controlled for Safety. The ServSafe 6th ed. Defines “TCS” as “food requiring time and temperature control for safety.”a. Examples are dairy products, eggs, meat and poultry, seafood, raw vegetables, (alfalfa sprouts, cut melons, baked potatoes, beans, rice, and garlic and oil mixtures), and soy products, like tofu. The 2007 Food Code has added cut tomatoes to this list. b. The 2009 Food Code has added cut leafy greens to the list of food items requiring time and temperature control. II. How Food Becomes UnsafeA. How Food Becomes Unsafe How Food Becomes Unsafe. - The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has identified common factors that are responsible for foodborne illness. They are.1. Purchasing food from unsafe sources2. Failing to cook food properly3. Holding food at improper temperatures4. Practicing Poor Personal Hygiene5. Cross contamination6. Poor Cleaning and SanitizingB. Remind employees that there are four major factors that can cause food to become unsafe.1. TIME AND TEMPERATURE ABUSE: temperature danger zone 41° to 135° Fahrenheit. Move food out of this temperature range by cooking it to the proper temperature, freezing it, or by refrigerating it at 41° or lower. a. Improper procedures are:i. Failure to properly cool foods.ii. Cooking incorrectly. Food is not cooked or reheated enough to kill pathogens.iii. Not correctly handling food cooked previously.iv. Allowing food to stay at room temperature for too long.v. Food is not cooled the right way. b. The four-hour rule limits the time food spends in the temperature danger zone. Prepare food in small batches and as close to the time of service as possible.2. CROSS-CONTAMINATION - how food and food-contact surfaces become contaminated.a. Raw food comes in hand to hand contact with ready to eat foods.b. Raw food drips onto ready to eat foods.c. Food contact surfaces such as cutting boards, knives and splash areas come into contact with raw foods.d. Raw food is added to food that receives no further cooking.e. Contaminated towels touch food-contact surfaces. 3. POOR PERSONAL HYGIENE - humans are the biggest source of foodborne illness because of improper hand washing practice.a. General practicesi. Bathing dailyii. Wearing clean clothesiii. Wearing hats or hair restraintsiv. Train employees not to touch face, hair, etc. without them then washing their hands.v. Dont wear jewelry or nail polish.vi. Smoking only in designated areas.vii. Drinking only from a covered cup.b. Hand-washing after any activity that would contaminate your hands. (covered elsewhere).c. Proper practices for use of glovesi. Wash hands before putting gloves on. ii. Wash when changing gloves.iii. Change gloves when soiled or after 4 hours of continual use or more often when necessary.iv. Band aids should always be covered with gloves.v. Gloves are never a substitute for proper hand washing procedures. vi. Change gloves before beginning a different task.vii. Change gloves after handling raw meat and before handling cooked or ready to eat food.d. Prohibited habitsi. Do not work with utensils before washing hands.ii. Prevent touching food contact surfaces with hands.iii. Do not sneeze or cough without covering and then return to work without washing hands.iv. Do not wash hands in the prep sink.v. Do not stack plates when serving food.vi. Do not wipe hands and use the same cloth for wiping.vii. Do not eat while preparing foode. Coming to work while sick-employees must tell their employers when they are sick. You must post notices that remind staff to notify management when they are ill. 4. POOR CLEANING AND SANITIZINGa. Equipment and utensils are not washed, rinsed, and sanitized between uses. b. Food-contact surfaces are wiped clean instead of being washed, rinsed and sanitized. c. Wiping cloths are not stored in a sanitizer solution between uses. d. Sanitizer solution was not prepared correctly. III. Government agencies A. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)B. U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)C. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)D. U.S. Public Health Service (PHS)E. State and local regulatory authoritiesIV. As manager, your job is to train your staff to follow correct procedures. Staff should be trained when they are first hired and on an ongoing basis. Everyone needs general food safety knowledge. Document each employees food service training.Chapter Two: The ContaminantsA. Viruses1. The leading cause of food borne illness.2. Viruses can survive cooler and freezer temperatures and are not destroyed by normal cooking temperatures. 3. Viruses dont grow in food. But once eaten, they grow inside a persons intestines.4. Viruses are carried by humans and animals, and can transfer from person to person, from people to food and from people to food-contact surfaces. 5. People get viruses from food, water, or contaminated surfaces.6. Foodborne illnesses from viruses typically occur through fecal-oral routes. 7. Therefore the best way to prevent food borne illness spread by viruses is to: a. Keep food handlers who are vomiting or have diarrhea or jaundice from working and quick cleanup of vomit is important.b. Make sure food handlers wash their hands.c. Minimize bare hand contact with ready to eat food8. The 2 major food borne illnesses caused by viruses are Hepatitis A and Norovirus gastroenteritis. B. Bacteriathey live in and on our bodies; they cannot be seen, smelled, or tasted.1. Conditions that favor bacterial growth are: “FAT TOM”. a. Foodpathogens need an energy source, such as carbohydrates or proteins. b. Acidity- pathogens grow best in food that contains little or no acid: “a PH of 5-7. c. Time: “the longer in the TDZ, the greater the risk. d. Temperature: “pathogens grow much faster between 70°F and 125°F”.e. Oxygen “some pathogens are aerobic (requiring oxygen for growth), while some are anaerobic (not requiring oxygen for growth)”.f. Moisture “0.85 or higher on the AW Scale that measure Water Activity”.2. The best way to stop bacterial growth is to control conditions that favor that growth. The two conditions that you will be able to control are time and temperature. a. Store food at temperatures outside the temperature danger zone (between 41° F and 135° F).b. Minimize the amount of time food is in the temperature danger zone during preparation.c. Dispose of any potentially hazardous foods that have remained in the TDZ for more than four hours.d. Cook food to minimum internal temperatures3. The Food and Drug Administration has identified 3 bacteria in particular that are highly contagious and can cause severe illness.a. Salmonellab. Shigellac. E. ColiC. Fungicooking or freezing will not destroy toxins produced by toxic wild mushrooms. Most of the foodborne-illness outbreaks are caused by the confusion between edible and wild mushrooms. D. Parasitesillnesses from parasites are not as common as those caused by bacteria or viruses. Parasites do share common characteristics: Commonly associated with seafood, wild game, and food processed with contaminated water. Cooking food to required minimum internal temperatures is also important. E. Physical and chemical hazards1. Physicalbones, glass and metal pieces2. Chemical contamination-foodservice chemicals can contaminate food if they are used incorrectly. a. Cleaners, sanitizers and pesticides and common food allergies (milk, eggs, fish, nuts, and preservatives).b. Toxic metalsutensils that contain toxic metals can cause toxic-metal poisoning. If acidic food is stored in or prepared with this equipment, the metal can leach and cause the food to become contaminated. Examples are lead, copper and zinc.c. Chemicals used in foodservice can contaminate food if they are used or stored the wrong way. Cleaners, sanitizers, polishes and machine lubricants pose risks. d. Store chemicals away from prep areas, food-storage areas, and service areas. Chemicals must never be stored above food or food-contact surfaces. F. Biological contaminates:1. Biological toxins that come from fish are:a. Scromboid poisoningcomes from tuna, bonito, mackerel and Mahi Mahi. This occurs when fish have been time-temperature abused. When these conditions occur, the fish produce the toxin, histamine, which cannot be killed by cooking or freezing. b. Ciguatera poisoningfound in predatory reef fish such as barracuda, grouper, amberjack and red snapper. The toxins accumulate when these fish eat smaller fish that have eaten a type of toxic algae. Symptoms are temp. Blindness, nausea, itching, and dizziness.c. The best way to prevent both of these toxins from being present in your kitchen is to buy your seafood supplies from approved sources. This is important because neither toxin can be destroyed by cooking. G. Food Allergensin the last 5 years the number of Americans with a food allergy has risen from 6 million to 11 million. A food allergy is the bodys negative reaction to a food protein. 1. Allergic reactions may occur immediately or several hours later. Symptoms include: a. Itching in and around the mouth, face, or scalpb. Tightening in the throatc. Shortness of breathd. Hivese. Swelling of the face, eyes, hands or feetf. Vomiting and crampsg. Loss of consciousnessh. Death2. Examples of common food allergens are:a. Milk and dairy productsb. Eggsc. Fishd. Shellfishe. Wheatf. Soyg. Peanuts and tree nuts3. Cooking around food allergens. It is of the utmost importance to address the prevention of cross-contact of food with potential food allergens during food preparation. To avoid cross contact be sure to wash, rinse and sanitize between uses. Wash hands and change gloves before preparing food. And lastly, assign specific equipment for preparing food for customers with allergens. Examples of cross-contact would include cooking shrimp and chicken in the same oil and putting food on surfaces that have touched allergens can cause cross-contact. Another example would be to put food on surfaces that have touched allergens. H. The FDA has developed the ALERT system for minimizing the danger of tampering with your food supplies:1. Assure - That products you receive are from safe sources. 2. Look - Monitor the security of products in the facility.3. Employees - Know who is in your facility.4. Reports - Keep information related to food defense accessible.5. Threat - Identify what you will do and who you will contact if there is suspicious activity or a threat at your operation.”I. Crisis Managementdealing with a food borne illness outbreak1. Preparationput a plan together before the crisis. Create a crisis-management team. 2. Responserespond to customer complaints. Create a list of responses that take the complaint seriously without admitting responsibility or accepting liability. 3. RecoveryWork with the regulatory agency to resolve issues. Set the suspected product aside if any remains. Include a label with Do Not Use and Do Not Discard on it. Investigate to find the cause of the outbreak. Develop a plan to reassure customers that the food you serve is safe. J. How contamination happens1. Contaminants come from a variety of places. Contaminants come from animals we use for food, from the air, contaminated water, and dirt. 2. Most food is contaminated accidentally. It happens because of the way people handle food contact surfaces. It you dont wash your hands after using the restroom then anything you touch can become contaminated. This is called the fecal-oral route.3. Food handlers can pass on contaminants when they are in contact with a person who is ill. 4. Contamination can happen in a variety of ways.a. From person to personb. Through sneezing or vomiting onto food or food-contact surfacesc. From touching dirty food-contact surfaces and equipment, and then touching food.Chapter 3: The Safe FoodhandlerA. How Foodhandlers Can Contaminate Food; any of the following situations can lead to contaminating food:1. When they have a foodborne illness2. When they have wounds that contain pathogens3. When they have contact with a person who is ill4. When they touch anything that may contaminate their hands and then dont wash them. 5. When they have symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, or jaundicea yellowing of the eyes or skin.6. When sneezing or coughingB. Components of a Good Personal Hygiene Program1. Hand practicesa. Hand washingb. Hand carec. Glove used. Preventing bare-hand contact with ready to eat food2. Personal Cleanliness3. Clothingincluding hair restraints and jewelryC. Management's Role in a Personal Hygiene Program1. Creating personal hygiene policies2. Training food handlers on those policies and retraining them when necessary3. Modeling the right behavior at all times. 4. Supervising food safety practices at all times.5. Revising personal hygiene policies when laws or science changeD. Hand washing: Many food handlers do not wash their hands the correct way or as often as they should. Every day our hands touch surfaces covered with microorganisms that we cannot see. Train your food handlers to wash their hands, and then you must m