The food goes through a number of processes in the factories and is at risk at various levels. Ensuring proper hygiene and quality checks is essential for food safety. Maintaining food hygiene is a necessity for good health.
Why food safety is a global responsibility now?
Food contamination can result in more than 200 different diseases, that are a threat to the people worldwide. As per the World Health Organization (WHO) the measures for food safety are of utmost important. Recently WHO has revealed new information on the diseases caused by unsafe food and the treat that these pose globally.
Since the food supply chain is spreading all over the world, it is important to boost the food safety measures within and amongst the countries worldwide. There are multiple points where the food can be infected by harmful chemicals, viruses, bacteria. There are many steps involved in the industrialized commercial distribution of food around the globe. A well-defined protocol and checks are required at different stages to ensure food safety.
Tips for proper and safe handling of food
To begin with, cleanliness is the most essential part of food hygiene. Before you handle food, make sure to wash your hands thoroughly. The kitchen should be in a hygienic condition too. All the utensils, kitchen tools, counter-tops and the cooking area should be clean to the effect that there are no bacteria there.
Use paper kitchen towels to clean the surfaces in the kitchen, if you prefer using cloth towels make sure that they are properly washed frequently. Whenever you use canned food, keep in mind to clean the lid of the can thoroughly before you open it. Cleaning all the fruits and veggies before eating or cooking is also important. Cooking at the right temperature will ensure the destruction of harmful bacteria.
Tips to ensure food safety in case of a power outage
In case of a power outage, the first thing that you must ensure is that the food inside your freezer and refrigerator is safe. The temperature inside the freezer is maintained for approximately 36 hours if the door isn’t opened and 3 to 4 hours inside the refrigerator. If the perishable food items are not kept at an appropriate temperature, they will spoil rather quickly.
Ensuring the safety of the food is everybody’s responsibility, after all even the growers are consumers. At home, we can take simple precautions to handle food safety and guarantee good health.
