Article

Food safety: Back to the basics

September 23, 2010 by Alicia Kelso — Editor, QSRWeb.com

So many chains have been the focal point of foodborne illness outbreaks. This summer seemed particularly chaotic, with salmonella cases traced to Taco Bell and Subway; massive recalls of eggs, juice and dairy products; and even a recall of McDonald’s Shrek-themed glasses.

And while the business model of massive chains seems to make food safety policing a little tricky, it doesn’t need to be. According to Donna Duberg, a member of the Tork Green Hygiene Council and assistant professor in Clinical Laboratory Science at Saint Louis University, food safety always comes back to the basics.

“My goal is to prevent people from getting sick, and there are basic things that people just aren’t doing. We need to get back into those habits, especially when it comes to the foodservice industry, where exposure reaches so many people that it can become devastating,” Duberg said.

Although it seems there has been more media exposure regarding large-scale foodborne illnesses as of late, Duberg said the caseload has been consistent throughout the years. However, the increased gravitation toward a monoculture system has presented a concern. Agricultural monoculture is the practice of cultivating a single crop for commercialization.

“The monoculture in this country – and around the world – where there are enormous farms or poultry farms, and there is an enormous number of products coming out of a few areas has really changed things. When bacteria get into that supply, into that large of a system, it’s virtually impossible to get it out,” Duberg said.

Products derived from these farms are also processed in enormous warehouses before being transferred in massive quantities, compounding the issue. Other factors that contribute to dangerous conditions are widespread misconceptions about refrigeration and unhygienic transport vessels.

“Bacteria slows in refrigerated conditions, but it is not killed, which is what too many people think. When products are being transported in refrigeration, from the warehouses to the trucks to the chains, bacteria is still multiplying. Also, we’re simply not cleaning our transport vessels. Those truck crates are not clean, so they could be adding something from a previous batch or farm,” Duberg said.

A remedy for these issues would be an increased adoption of obtaining products from local sources and smaller farms.

“A big suggestion to have safer food is to buy locally, organically. Doing so reduces the potential for an outbreak and reduces widespread distribution of contaminated products. It not only keeps it contained, it is easier to come up with a resolution if something does happen,” Duberg said. “The hope is that by eating locally, we’ll reduce the possibility of pathogenic bacteria.”

Switching to local vendors may be costlier, but reducing the risk of foodborne illnesses trumps such a concern.

“What’s the alternative? Not only is there a health concern, but people aren’t going to trust your facility, your brand, if something happens. It’s worth raising prices by a small amount to buy locally,” Duberg said.

Duberg has many other tips for foodservice employees, from the basics to more calculated efforts. They include the following:

• Hand washing has always been and will always be the biggest solution. Keep hand sanitizer in the food production area, as well as in the dining area for customers. “Hand hygiene is the number one way to control the chain of infection, and, although we all know we should wash our hands, many of us do not,” Duberg said.
• Clean produce thoroughly. Lettuce tends to be a big source of bacteria, and leafy vegetables in general are vulnerable. There are also items that may be surprisingly susceptible, such as cantaloupe, that tend to be neglected. “Products that have a rough surface, like cantaloupe, need to be brushed clean,” Duberg said. “Soaking leafy vegetables in a solution of 10 percent vinegar and 90 percent water can kill all of the bacteria.”
• Also, tomatoes and cucumbers have an oily coating that should be removed. “Removing oil means removing bacteria,” Duberg said.
• Wash eggs. “I wash mine off at home with pure soap and water. The same should be done in restaurants,” Duberg said.
• Cook food thoroughly. “Fast” food doesn’t mean rushing enough to compromise the safety of your products.
• Use single release napkins, which decrease hand exposure from others reaching into the dispenser.
• Replace air dryers in the bathroom with hands-free paper towel dispensers. “This way your employees and customers can use the paper towels to open the door when they’re done drying,” Duberg said.
• Keep food production areas separate. “Control the flow of things coming into your facility. Keep the meat production area on the opposite side of the produce area. As meat comes in, it should go in one direction, and produce should go in another,” Duberg said. Also, keep discarded meat packaging near the back door.
• Use color coding. Use red wipes to clean up meat stations, green cloths to clean up produce, etc. Each color can be designated for separate uses or certain areas of the restaurant, and it’s easier for new trainees to learn the system.
• Use disposable cloths or paper. Non-woven wipes are far safer than regular cloths and are relatively inexpensive. “Not to mention most restaurants don’t come with a washer and dryer on site,” Duberg said.
• Employees who touch money should not be touching food. Employees who wear gloves to prepare food should not be touching other surfaces.
• Restaurants with buffets or salad bars should offer smaller amounts at a time. “Do not add to containers already on the buffets and salad bars. Never add fresh to old. Use smaller amounts and replace what is out there. You should have a staff member on the floor checking the food to know when it needs replacing,” Duberg said.
• Know your vendors. Visit your vendors to check out their operational flow. “The source of bacteria is almost always from the vendor, so know what they do to support food safety,” Duberg said.
• Increase employees’ knowledge about food safety basics. Reiterate the appropriate handling protocols often, have a written policy in place, and hold webinars or training sessions for managers on the issue. “If you own a facility, you need to go back to the basics and remind your employees often of good food production. Train them and retrain them,” Duberg said.

Although many of these tips seem simple on paper, pathogenic bacteria is constantly present, so the smallest oversight can result in drastic consequences. Thirty-two percent of all food poisoning incidents are due to poor hygiene; and 5,000 deaths occur each year from foodborne illnesses.

“There still needs to be a lot of education done because people still neglect to follow the basics,” Duberg said. “At the management level, the focus needs to be on guidelines, training and awareness. But when it comes down to it, we’re all responsible for keeping our food safe.”

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