What makes food unsafe?
A food hazard is anything that could make food unsafe to eat. There are 3 main types.
Microbiological hazards are harmful bacteria. Chemical hazards include cleaning chemicals and allergens. Physical hazards are objects that end up in food, like glass, plasters or a stray earring.
Remember
- Microbiological: bacteria and other bugs.
- Chemical: cleaning products and allergens.
- Physical: things that fall into food.
Facts and sources for this part
- A food hazard is anything that could make food unsafe to eat. The 3 main types are microbiological (harmful bacteria), chemical (including cleaning chemicals and allergens) and physical (objects getting into food). [S24]
How does cross-contamination happen?
Mostly when raw food touches or drips onto ready-to-eat food, equipment or surfaces. Raw chicken on a board, then salad on the same board, is the classic route. Hands, cloths and shared touch points such as door handles and tills carry it too.
It is one of the most common causes of food poisoning. The fix is separation: of food, of equipment and of the people and cloths that touch them.
Remember
- Raw food is the usual source.
- Ready-to-eat food is the usual victim.
- Separation stops the spread.
How do you keep raw and ready-to-eat food apart?
In the fridge, raw food goes below ready-to-eat food, so it cannot drip onto it. Separate fridges are better still.
Use different chopping boards and knives for raw meat and ready-to-eat food, unless they can be heat disinfected, for example in a commercial dishwasher. Keep separate cloths, sponges and mops for ready-to-eat areas.
Remember
- Raw at the bottom, ready-to-eat above.
- Separate boards and knives unless heat disinfected.
- Separate cloths for ready-to-eat areas.
Facts and sources for this part
- Store raw food below ready-to-eat food in the fridge, and use separate fridges if possible. [S13]
- Use different equipment, including chopping boards and knives, for raw meat or poultry and for ready-to-eat food, unless it can be heat disinfected, for example in a commercial dishwasher. [S13]
- Use separate cleaning materials, including cloths, sponges and mops, in areas where ready-to-eat food is stored, handled and prepared. [S13]
Should you wash raw chicken?
No. Do not wash raw meat, fish or poultry.
Washing it under a tap splashes bacteria onto your hands, clothes, utensils and worktops. Thorough cooking is what makes it safe. Wash your hands after handling it, and clean anything it touched.
Remember
- Never rinse raw meat or poultry.
- Splashes spread bacteria further than you think.
- Cooking, not washing, kills the bacteria.
Facts and sources for this part
- Raw meat, fish and poultry should not be washed: washing under a tap can splash bacteria onto hands, clothes, utensils and worktops. [S14]
How do pests, waste and chemicals get in?
Through gaps in the routine. A business must have proper procedures to control pests, and food waste must leave rooms where food is present as quickly as possible, before it builds up.
Cleaning products and disinfectants are not stored where food is handled. A spray bottle next to the salad is a chemical hazard waiting to happen.
Remember
- Report signs of pests at once.
- Bins out of food rooms, often.
- Chemicals live away from food.
Facts and sources for this part
What do you check when a delivery arrives?
Three things: chilled and frozen food is cold enough, the packaging is not damaged, and it is what was ordered. If something looks wrong, do not use it and tell your manager.
Getting chilled food into the fridge quickly matters too. The law says the cold chain must not be interrupted.
Remember
- Cold enough, undamaged, as ordered.
- Refuse or set aside anything doubtful.
- Put chilled food away first.
Check what you have learned
Three questions from the test, each explained. Tap an answer.
Question 1 of 3
When is harmful cross-contamination most likely?
Show the answer
Right answer: B, When raw food touches or drips onto ready-to-eat food, equipment or surfaces. Harmful cross-contamination is most likely when raw food touches or drips onto ready-to-eat food, equipment or surfaces. [S13]
Question 2 of 3
Should you rinse raw chicken under the tap before cooking it?
Show the answer
Right answer: A, No, it splashes bacteria onto hands, clothes and worktops. Raw meat, fish and poultry should not be washed. Washing splashes bacteria onto hands, clothes, utensils and worktops. [S14]
Question 3 of 3
How quickly should food waste leave a room where food is present?
Show the answer
Right answer: D, As quickly as possible, so it does not build up. Food waste and other refuse must be removed from rooms where food is present as quickly as possible, so it does not build up. [S2]