Food Safety 101 Foodborne Illness: Awareness and Prevention

Level One Certification CourseArea 2

Kentucky Department of Education Division of School and Community

Nutrition

At the end of this presentation, you will be able to: Recognize harmful bacteria and viruses; Understand the Danger Zone; Utilize proper techniques to avoid cross

contamination; Utilize proper cooking temperatures for

cooling, thawing, reheating and holding times and date marking.

Objectives

Who is the most vulnerable to foodborne illness? Young children (infants and school-aged) Older adults (elderly) Individuals with compromised immune

systems (pregnant, sick, etc.)

Foodborne Illness

Causes of Foodborne Illness:Let’s look at bacteria The types of bacteria are:

Beneficial bacteria Beneficial bacteria lives in our environment and in our

bodies, helping us with digestion, vitamin production and helping to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria.

Spoilage Bacteria There are bacteria that live and grow in food that can

cause damage to the flavor, appearance, texture or composition of food.

Pathogens These are the bacteria that produce disease in the human

body. These bacteria are our main concern, as they are responsible for foodborne illness.

Foodborne Illness

Examples of Harmful Bacteria

Foodborne Illness

Causes of Foodborne Illness:Let’s look at Viruses A virus is much smaller than a bacteria and

must live inside a living cell in order to survive and reproduce. It takes very few cells infected with a virus to make a person sick.

Personal hygiene, especially washing your hands frequently, are important in preventing foodborne illness caused by viruses.

Foodborne Illness

There are two viruses that are of major concern in food service:Norovirus:- Causes nausea, stomach aches, vomiting and diarrhea. - Causes more foodborne illness than all other causes of foodborne illnesses combined. - To prevent the spread of norovirus, you should:- not come to work while sick, - wash your hands frequently (especially after using the bathroom) - avoid eating raw shellfish. Hepatitis A - Causes a serious infection of the liver. - Hand-washing is the most significant way you can prevent the spread of this foodborne illness.

Foodborne Illness

Now let’s look at:Potentially Hazardous Foods (PHF), What are they?Bacteria grows rapidly in environments that are:

Moist; Have low acidity levels; or In/on meat, dairy, eggs, cooked

vegetables, rice and pasta.

Potentially Hazardous Foods

Food Storage: Preventing Foods from Becoming Unsafe

Storage: Separate raw meats, poultry,

seafood and eggs from other foods. These foods should be stored on

lower shelves, while cooked and ready-to-eat foods should be stored on higher shelves.

This is so there is no opportunity for juices from raw foods to drip and contaminate prepared foods.

Recommended Temperatures: Produce: 45° F or below Dairy and Meat: 40° F or below Seafood: 30° F or below

Potentially Hazardous Foods

Remember Any time you touch raw animal

products, Wash Your Hands!

Potentially Hazardous Foods

Don’t forget produce!- Remember that bacteria and viruses can be or grow on the outside of fresh produce. - Since we eat a lot of our produce raw, it is important to wash all fruits and vegetables thoroughly to prevent contamination that can lead to illness.

- Even though we do not eat the skin on some fruits, when we slice into hard skin, the knife can carry contaminants from the outer skin into the flesh of the fruit or vegetable that we will be eating.

Potentially Hazardous Foods

More produce safetyFor soft-skinned fruits and vegetables:- Rinse under running water or with a fresh

produce rinse product.

For firm-skinned fruits and vegetables:- Rub under running tap water or with a

fresh produce rinse product with your hands, or scrub with a clean vegetable brush.

Potentially Hazardous Foods

What is Cross-Contamination? Cross contamination is the transfer of

harmful bacteria from one food via means of utensils, equipment or human hands to another food. It also can occur when a raw food touches or drips onto a cooked or ready-to-eat food.

Cross-Contamination

Cross-Contamination

Cross-Contamination

Preventing Cross-Contamination Wash, rinse and sanitize cutting boards,

knives, utensils and countertops after contact with raw meat.

Store raw meat below and away from all ready-to-eat foods.

Wash, rinse and sanitize food- contact equipment (slicers, knives, cutting boards) at least every 4 hours.

Wash hands before handling food and after touching raw meat.

Cross-Contamination

Foreign material can make food unsafe. Foreign materials are any objects in food

that are not foods themselves. Foreign material contamination can cause the person who eats the contaminated food to become sick, poisoned, choke or cause damage to their digestive track.

Cross-Contamination

Examples of Some Harmful Foreign Materials

Cross-Contamination

Preventing Foreign Material Contamination Vigilance is the only way to prevent

foreign material contamination. Store chemicals away from foods. Frequently inspect utensils and

equipment for damage. Discard foods that you believe to be

contaminated.

Cross-Contamination

The Danger Zone: Time and Temperature Abuse Time and temperature abuse is one of

the most common ways food becomes infested with bacteria.

The longer a food spends (time) in the Danger Zone (temperature) the higher the risk of foodborne illness.

Danger Zone

What is the Danger Zone?

Danger Zone

Avoiding the Danger Zone:How do I store raw foods? Produce: 45° F or below Dairy and Meat: 40° F or below Seafood: 30° F or below

Danger Zone

Avoiding the Danger Zone:How do I thaw frozen foods?Frozen foods should be thawed in one of the following ways:- In the refrigerator, on a tray.- Under cool running water.- During the cooking process.- In a microwave oven (if food is to be

cooked immediately after thawing).

Danger Zone

Avoiding the Danger Zone:How do I know if a food is done? We use high temperatures to kill

bacteria, viruses and other microorganisms found on and in raw meat, poultry, eggs and seafood.

It is important to measure the temperatures of the following foods with a calibrated food thermometer.

Danger Zone

Avoiding the Danger Zone:How do I hold for service? Cold foods should be held below 40° F. Examples of

cold service foods include salad and yogurt bars.* Hot foods should be held above 140° F. Examples of

hot foods include cooked rice, vegetables and meats.* Temperatures for both hot and cold foods should be

checked at scheduled intervals and recorded.

If the food being held is in the Danger Zone, it should be discarded.

*Be sure to check your district policy for holding temperatures.

Danger Zone

Avoiding the Danger Zone:How do I cool food for storage? Cooked foods should be rapidly chilled so they

spend as little time as possible in the Danger Zone.

The Kentucky Food Code requires that potentially hazardous foods are chilled to at least 45° F within 4 hours.

Ideally, hot foods should be cooled from 135° F to 70° F within 2 hours and cooled from 70° F to 40° F or less within 4 hours.

Room temperature foods should also be cooled to 40° F or less within 4 hours.

Danger Zone

Avoiding the Danger Zone:How do I cool foods?Acceptable Cooling Methods- Separate into smaller portions.- Place food in shallow pans.- Use containers that facilitate heat transfer.- Stir food in container that has been placed in an

ice-water bath.- Arrange a refrigerator for maximum heat

transfer. - Use rapid cooling equipment.- Add ice as an ingredient.

Danger Zone

Avoiding the Danger Zone:How do I reheat foods? Foods should be reheated quickly to

165° F before serving. Reheating to 165° F will kill bacteria which may have multiplied while food was being cooled.

Food that is reheated in the microwave should be allowed to stand for 2 minutes after heating to 165° F to ensure that food is heated throughout.

Danger Zone

Avoiding the Danger Zone:Always keep a record! In order to ensure foods do not stay in

the Danger Zone for too long, it is important to keep records.

Mark containers with a maximum 4 hour time period in the Danger Zone at the time they are removed from a controlled temperature environment so the food can be discarded if it spends too much time in the Danger Zone.

Danger Zone

Let’s look at Date Marking Date marking ensures that food is either

used or discarded before it spoils. It is an important step in reducing risk of

foodborne illnesses.

Date Marking

Date Marking cont. Refrigerated, ready-to-eat, and

potentially hazardous foods shall be marked with a “Consume By Date”: At time of preparation, if prepared on the

premises and held for over 24 hours.OR At the time the container is opened, if

obtained from a commercial vendor.

Date Marking

If subsequently frozen: When the food is thawed, mark that it

shall be consumed within 24 hours. Mark at the time of freezing how many

days it has already been held at refrigeration. Upon thawing, subtract these days from the new “consume by date”.

Date Marking

Discard food if: The “consume by date” has expired. The food is not consumed within 24

hours of thawing. The food is not date marked or

marked appropriately.

Date Marking

Lessons learned… Now we can recognize harmful bacteria

and viruses; Understand the Danger Zone; Utilize proper techniques to avoid cross

contamination; and Utilize proper cooking temperatures for

cooling, thawing, reheating and holding times and date marking.

Objectives