Food Hygiene

 

Food contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms, chemicals and foreign matters may compromise food safety. Therefore, food establishment should not accept food known (or suspected) to be contaminated with these substances.

 

 

Most pathogenic bacteria grow and multiply rapidly at temperatures between 5°C and 60°C. At temperatures, lower than 5°C and higher than 60°C, bacterial growth slows down or stops. However, there are bacteria that can grow slowly up to a temperature of -2°C and most bacteria can survive cold temperatures and resume multiplication later when conditions become suitable again. This range of temperatures between 5°C and 60°C is normally called the TEMPERATURE DANGER ZONE. High risk food may be contaminated by pathogenic bacteria which can multiply to dangerous levels at ambient temperatures. As such, high risk food should be kept at or below 5°C, or at or above 60°C during delivery, to prevent growth of these bacteria. The temperature of the food may go up during the delivery time, but this time should be as short as possible. Freezing is a process in which the temperature of a food is reduced below its freezing point and the majority of the water inside the food undergoes a change in state to form ice crystals. Freezing preserves food for extended period of time by preventing the growth of micro-organisms that cause food spoilage and foodborne illnesses. To maintain the quality of frozen food, a temperature of –18°C or less is preferred.

 

 

Cooling after Cooking

a. Cooked high risk foods intended to be kept under refrigerated storage prior to serving, are to be cooled from 60°C to 20°C or less within two hours and then from 19°C to 5°C or less within 4 hours (total 6 hours).

b. Foods that are cooled this way and stored chilled should be used within 72 hours from the time of preparation.

Note: Food stays at the danger zone for more than 2 hours during cooling. Rapid cooling prevents multiplication of bacteria and this is an exceptional situation.

There are some ways that can help to cool food rapidly:

• reduce the volume of the food by dividing it into smaller portions and / or placing it in shallow containers.

• cut large joints of meat and poultry into smaller chunks before cooking; and

• When cooling equipment is used, ensure there is space around the food containers so that the cold air in the refrigerator or cool room can circulate freely.