Fact: More than 50% of the population don’t wash after going potty.
Fact: Bacteria flies up to 6 feet when the toliet is flushed.
Fact: Food handlers are usually the cause of foodborne diseases.
(Source: Comprehensive Food Safety Training Manual 17th Edition. Copyright 2007. pp. 8.)
This blurp on food safety is targeted at those who work in restaurant kitchens but can totally be applied to home as well.
Food safety starts with your personal cleanliness. Before starting your day in the kitchen, take a shower, soaping up the body and shampooing your head, even if you don’t have hair. Brush your teeth, wear deodorant, and put on a clean uniform. Wear hats in the kitchen, clean aprons and have single use, disposable gloves on site. And remember: wash, wash, wash your hands.
Wash your hands properly. Make sure your water is hot enough, 110 degrees, and scrub from your finger tips to your elbows for 20 seconds. Then rinse off all suds under running water. Do NOT touch the faucet when you’re done! Grab paper towels, drying your hands and arms, then use the paper towel to turn the faucet off and immediately throw the towel away.
Before leaving the kitchen, especially to use the restroom or take out the trash, remove your apron and hat to prevent bacteria from latching on and thus entering the kitchen.
If you’re sick with a fever, vomiting, diarrhea, colds or an infected wound: STAY HOME!
A lot of this is common sense stuff but too often common sense isn’t so common.
For more tips visit your local health department, take a food handler’s safety certification class and cruise government websites.
Educate and prevent.
