What is safe food handling?
Food is one of the leading causes of disease and death. The most preventable causes of illness and death are those related to unsafe food handling. Safe food handling is your responsibility from the time food is harvested and throughout the entire supply chain. Food safety is a complex issue and there is no one solution that works for every situation. As such, you must take a whole-of-supply chain approach to keep food safe.
The Truth About What You Need to Know About Safe Food Handling
What is safe food handling?
Food safety can help you avoid foodborne illnesses, keep your food safe, and save money. Food safety refers to keeping it away from impurities such as dirt and microorganisms that can contaminate it. It also entails possessing the requisite knowledge and abilities for securely preparing, storing, and serving food.
Cross-contamination, or the transfer of pathogens from one food to another, should be avoided by following safe food handling techniques. When you don't wash your hands, don't sanitize your work surfaces, or don't use gloves or sanitizing wipes, bacteria from one source (such as dirt or another food) get transferred to another surface or food. The food handling techniques can help avoid the spread of hazardous pathogens that have affected many in the United states.
According to the federal government, there are approximately 48 million cases of foodborne disease each year, which equates to one in every six Americans becoming ill, as reported by the US Food and Drug Administration. Each year, these infections are expected to result in 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000
Safe food handling during disaster or emergency
Prepare an emergency food supply chart before a disaster or emergency because a disaster can disrupt the food supply, so plan to have at least a three-day supply of food on hand.
Keep foods that have a long storage life and require little or no cooking, water, or refrigeration in case of power outages. Meet the needs of infants and other family members on special diets, as well as the needs of pets. Avoid foods that are extremely salty or spicy, as these increase the need for drinking water, which may be in short supply.
A lot of people don’t know how to safely handle food
The article will provide information on what you need to know about safe food handling
Storage of an Emergency Food Supply
It is not required to purchase dehydrated or other types of emergency food when preserving food. Expiration dates on canned foods and dry mixes should be checked. Home-canned food normally has to be thrown out after a year, so use it up and replace it before it expires. The shelf life of canned or dried goods can be extended under certain storage conditions. A cool, dry, and dark environment are best. Temperatures between 40 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit are ideal.
Keep items away from stovetops and refrigerator exhaust vents. Many foods degrade more quickly when exposed to heat. Food should be kept away from petroleum compounds including gasoline, oil, paints, and solvents since some food absorbs their odor.
Food should be kept safe from rats and insects. If items in boxes or paper cartons are heavily wrapped or stored in watertight, airtight containers, they will last longer. Food should be stored on shelves that are out of the path of flooding.
Emergency water supply
For each human and pet, keep at least 1 gallon of water on hand each day. For warmer climates, pregnant women, and sick people, consider keeping more water than this. For each person and pet, keep at least a 3-day supply of water on hand. Make sure your emergency water supply is kept as far away from flooding as possible.
Do not consume or use bottled water if it has an odor. Instead, throw it away or, if necessary, contact your bottled water source for a replacement. Store-bought water has an expiration date; other stored water should be replaced every 6 months.
To disinfect your water and for regular cleaning and sanitizing, have a bottle of unscented liquid home chlorine bleach on hand. Store bleach in a location with an average temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21 degrees Celsius). Consider refilling the bottle every year because the amount of active chlorine in bleach reduces with time.
Preparing for a power outage
Make sure your refrigerator and freezer have appliance thermometers. Check that the freezer temperature is 0 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, and the refrigerator temperature is 40 degrees Fahrenheit or lower. The appliance thermometers will indicate the temperatures in the refrigerator and freezer in the event of a power outage, allowing you to evaluate whether the food is safe.
If the power goes out, buy or create ice cubes ahead of time, and freeze gel packs and water containers to keep food cold in the freezer, refrigerator, or coolers. All of these can be frozen and used later in the refrigerator or cooler. The ice melting in the water containers will also provide clean drinking water. Freeze any perishable things you won't use right away, such as leftovers, milk, and fresh meat and poultry. This helps to keep them at a safe temperature for a longer period.
In the freezer, group similar foods together. The meal will stay colder for longer as a result of this. If the power is down for more than 4 hours, have coolers on standby to keep refrigerated food cold. Check out local sources to see where you can get dry ice and block ice in case you need it.
How do I know what’s safe and what isn’t?
ZipChecklist will walk you through the basics of how to keep your food safe
Safe food handling by types of food
Internal temperature of beef, pork, veal, and lamb (chops, roasts, steaks) should be 145 degrees Fahrenheit with a 3 minute rest time. Ground meat should be 160 degrees Fahrenheit, and uncooked (fresh or smoked) ham should be 145 degrees Fahrenheit with a 3 minute rest time. Ham should be thoroughly cooked (to reheat) at 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
The internal temperature of poultry (ground, pieces, whole, and stuffing) should be 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook eggs until the yolk and white are solid, and keep egg dishes at 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Fin fish must be stored at 145 degrees Fahrenheit or the flesh will get opaque and separate readily with a fork. The flesh of shrimp, lobster, and crabs should be pearly and opaque.
Mussels, Clams, and Oysters During the cooking process, the shells should be opened. Scallops should be served at room temperature. Milky white or opaque and solid flesh. Casseroles and leftovers should be heated to 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Steps to safe food handling
Although the majority of healthy people recover quickly from a foodborne illness, others can suffer chronic, severe, or even life-threatening health problems. Pregnant women, young children, older adults, and persons with compromised immune systems are also at an increased risk of contracting foodborne illnesses. Follow these four simple procedures to keep your family safe from food poisoning-
1. Prevent food poisoning through cleaning
Hands should be washed for at least 20 seconds with warm water and soap before and after handling food, as well as after using the restroom, changing diapers, and handling pets. After preparing each food item, wash your cutting boards, dishes, utensils, and countertops with hot soapy water.
To clean kitchen surfaces, consider using paper towels. If you use cloth towels, wash them on the hot cycle frequently. Fresh fruits and vegetables, especially those with skins and rinds that will not be eaten, should be rinsed under running tap water. Using a clean produce brush, scrub tough produce. Before opening canned products, remember to clean the lids.
2. Always separate and never cross contaminate your food produce
In your supermarket cart, grocery bags, and refrigerator, keep raw meat, poultry, seafood, and eggs separate from other foods. Fresh fruit should be sliced on one cutting board, while raw meat, poultry, and seafood should be cut on another.
Cooked food should never be served on a dish that previously held raw meat, poultry, seafood, or eggs without first being rinsed in hot, soapy water. If you've used marinades on raw foods before, bring them to a boil first.
3. Always cook at the right temperature
Color and texture are unreliable safety indicators. The only way to ensure the safety of meat, poultry, seafood, and egg products for all cooking methods is to use a food thermometer. To kill any hazardous bacteria, these items must be cooked to a safe minimum internal temperature. Cook until the yolk and white of the eggs are firm. Use only recipes that call for thoroughly cooked or warm eggs.
Cover, stir and rotate food in a microwave oven to ensure equal cooking. If you don't have a turntable, rotate the dish once or twice by hand while it's cooking. Before using a food thermometer to verify the interior temperature, always leave time for the cooking to finish. When reheating sauces, soups, and gravies, bring them to a boil.
4. Freeze food properly
Make that the temperature in the refrigerator is consistently 40 degrees Fahrenheit or below, and the freezer temperature is 0 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, using an appliance thermometer.
Within 2 hours of cooking or purchasing, refrigerate or freeze meat, poultry, eggs, shellfish, and other perishables. If the temperature outside is above 90 degrees Fahrenheit, refrigerate within 1 hour.
Food should never be thawed at normal temperatures, such as on the counter. Food can be defrosted in three different ways- in the refrigerator, in cold water, or the microwave. Food that has been thawed in cold water or the microwave should be prepared as soon as possible. Food should always be marinated in the refrigerator. To speed up the cooling process in the refrigerator, divide large amounts of leftovers into shallow containers.
The importance of food handler card
Foodborne sickness is caused by ingesting germ-infested food or beverages. It's possible that the food wasn't properly cooked or that it was left out at room temperature. Someone handling the meal could have been unwell or had germs on their hands. Foodborne disease can be caused by even the smallest food handling errors, and when this happens to two or more people, it's known as a foodborne epidemic.
The greatest method to protect the general public, food workers, and their families is to educate them. Food handlers who have been properly taught can improve food safety and reduce the risks and behaviors that are typically linked to foodborne diseases and outbreaks.
Due to the above mentioned reasons many states require food handlers to renew their food handler cards at legally set periods in order to maintain their licenses valid to provide Safe Food.
Make Zip Checklist your food safety partner
It's tough to keep track of all the chores you've completed in the kitchen, especially when it comes to food safety in a large restaurant kitchen. Zip Checklist might be your dependable companion in this situation.
By creating standard operating procedure checklists and updating sop templates, Zip Checklist can help you maintain a standard operating procedure in your kitchen and keep you and your employees up to date.
It also makes teamwork management easier, allowing you to view your task lists from any device and do business responsibilities. It also organizes daily, weekly, and monthly task lists by keeping track of shared task lists and adjusting them based on employee productivity data. This would eliminate the possibility of your restaurant's Food Safety protocol being overlooked.
Your phone's task management software keeps track of your to-do lists on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis and ensures that standard operating procedures are followed. This is how task manager notifications are sent. While on the road, it also maintains track of task assignments.
For further information or a free demo, please contact the Zip Checklist team.
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ZipChecklist will address the most common myths and misconceptions about safe food handling
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Frequently Asked Questions
What are safe food handling practices?
When you hear the words safe food handling practices, your first instinct might be to run to the nearest kitchen cabinet and check the expiration date on that box of raisins you keep there. After all, doesn't handling food mean caring for it properly? The answer is yes, but it also depends on the context of how, why and to whom you are handling the food. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA, defines safe food handling practices as safe methods of handling food to protect the public, food handlers and food. When you hear the term, it's easy to think of it as a checklist of things to do to keep your food as safe as possible. The truth is, there are so many other factors involved.When you hear the words safe food handling practices, your first instinct might be to run to the nearest kitchen cabinet and check the expiration date on that box of raisins you keep there. After all, doesn't handling food mean caring for it properly? The answer is yes, but it also depends on the context of how, why and to whom you are handling the food. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA, defines safe food handling practices as safe methods of handling food to protect the public, food handlers and food. When you hear the term, it's easy to think of it as a checklist of things to do to keep your food as safe as possible. The truth is, there are so many other factors involved.When you hear the words safe food handling practices, your first instinct might be to run to the nearest kitchen cabinet and check the expiration date on that box of raisins you keep there. After all, doesn't handling food mean caring for it properly? The answer is yes, but it also depends on the context of how, why and to whom you are handling the food. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA, defines safe food handling practices as safe methods of handling food to protect the public, food handlers and food. When you hear the term, it's easy to think of it as a checklist of things to do to keep your food as safe as possible. The truth is, there are so many other factors involved.When you hear the words safe food handling practices, your first instinct might be to run to the nearest kitchen cabinet and check the expiration date on that box of raisins you keep there. After all, doesn't handling food mean caring for it properly? The answer is yes, but it also depends on the context of how, why and to whom you are handling the food. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA, defines safe food handling practices as safe methods of handling food to protect the public, food handlers and food. When you hear the term, it's easy to think of it as a checklist of things to do to keep your food as safe as possible. The truth is, there are so many other factors involved.