Kitchen Safety & Sanitation
Or…what You Don’t Know CAN Hurt You!
Paula Haggerty
Family & Consumer Science
Pierce Middle School
Unit Objectives
 Learn why it is important to work in a clean
and safe kitchen.
 Know how to prevent food-borne illnesses.
 Recognize and identify potential safety
problems found in the kitchen.
 Use good safety and sanitation practices in
food preparation.
Orientation
Every day we assume that the food we eat is safe. However,
unless everyone who has handled the food has used good
sanitation practices this may not be the case.
SANITATION is the process of handling food in ways that
are clean and healthy.
No one likes to cut a finger on a knife, get burned or slip and
fall. Most of us, however, have had one or more of these
accidents. SAFETY in the kitchen means using
precautionary methods in the kitchen to prevent an
accident. Most accidents in the kitchen are due to
carelessness.
SAFETY first. How much do you already know about kitchen safety? For
each question below, decide whether the practice is safe or unsafe. Click the
box next to each question to reveal the answer.
UNSAFE
1. Use a towel or your apron to remove a pan from the oven.
SAFE
2. Pour salt or baking soda over the flames of a grease fire.
SAFE
3. Wipe up spills on the floor right away.
UNSAFE
SAFE
4. Pour water on a grease fire.
5. Tie back long hair.
UNSAFE
6. Climb up on the counter to get items from the top shelf.
UNSAFE
7. Use electric appliances with wet hands.
UNSAFE
8. Wearing loose clothing while working in the kitchen.
SAFE
UNSAFE
9. Cut away from your body when using a sharp knife.
10. Keep cabinet doors open so everything is in easy reach.
How did you do? Were you a super chef or do you
still need to learn more about keeping yourself safe
in the kitchen?
Activity.
• Students will be divided into teams of 4.
• Each team will create a poster illustrating ONE
of the aspects of kitchen safety found here
using markers, crayons, magazine pictures, etc.
• Make sure that you fully illustrate the correct
safety principle in your poster and that is both
neatly done and original. These posters will be
hung in the classroom.
Do you think you’ve learned it all now?
Let’s play a game and see!
Click here to
Test your skill!
Let’s Review….
Ways to prevent burns and fires.
• Use dry pot holders when handling hot items.
• Do not leave pot holders near a hot burner.
• Turn handles of pans so they don’t stick out over the edge of the range
or over other burners.
• Always lift the lids of saucepans away from you so the steam will not
burn you.
• Do not reach across hot burners or lit gas burners.
• Keep a fire extinguisher in or near the kitchen and know how to use it!
• If you have a grease fire, immediately put the lid on the pan. If this
doesn’t work, smother the fire with salt, baking soda, sand or a fire
extinguisher.
• When you have finished cooking, make sure all oven and range buttons
or dials are turned off.
Let’s Review….
How to avoid falls.
• Wipe up spills immediately.
• Pick up toys and other objects from the middle of the floor
or from any traffic area.
• Use a sturdy step stool or ladder to reach high places.
• Be sure all floor mats and rugs have nonskid backs.
• Keep pets out of the kitchen while you’re cooking.
Let’s Review….
How to prevent cuts.
• Always pick up a knife by its handle.
• Always slice, chop, cut or dice foods on a cutting board.
• Wash sharp knives separately. Do not simply drop knives
into the dishwater.
• Always cut food with the blade of the knife down and
slanting away from you.
• Never put your fingers near the moving parts of an electric
mixer, food processor, blender or garbage disposal.
• Be careful when you discard broken glass. Do not pick up
pieces with your bare hands. Sweep the larger pieces into a
dustpan. Use a wet paper towel to pick up smaller pieces.
Activity.
Think about your kitchen at home. How well do you
follow safety procedures there?
• In your mind, conduct a “safety first hunt” in your home kitchen.
Then make two lists
 List one: the safety procedures you regularly follow in your home kitchen.
 List two: the safety procedures you need to practice more regularly in your
home kitchen.
• Using these two lists, write a letter to your family about kitchen
safety.
 Complement and thank everyone for following the safety procedures from
your first list.
 Tell everyone what procedures your family needs to improve on and
convince them to try these new methods.
Now for SANITATION. How much do you already know about staying
sanitary in the kitchen? Let’s test your knowledge. Read the story
“SCHOOL DANCE DISASTER” on the next slides. Every time you
come to an underlined phrase you will need to make a decision. Is this
situation SANITARY or UNSANITARY? Once you have decided on your
answer, click on the link to see if you are correct.
SCHOOL DANCE DISASTER
Justin, a 12 year old middle school student, volunteered to help prepare food for the big 8th grade
dance. He had just moved to this area, but never had a food class before. All the guys in his
neighborhood were busy cooking because they learned so much from their foods teacher in
school and Justin wanted to be part of the fun.
The first item to prepare was egg salad sandwiches. As Justin put the eggs in the water to boil,
he filled the pot a little too full and it spilled by the time all the eggs were put in it. He grabbed
the towel he used for drying dishes and immediately wiped up the spill on the floor. While the
eggs were cooling, Justin began the chicken salad. The chicken had thawed on the counter since
last night, so it was ready to be boiled. He thought it smelled odd, but decided to use it anyway
since he didn’t have time to wait for more chicken to thaw. The boiling water would certainly kill
any germs, he thought.
Justin was dressed in a long baggy shirt. As he tried to fix his sleeves one more time, his cat, GUnit, jumped onto the counter looking for attention. The family adores G-Unit and always lets
him sit wherever he wants. Justin went back to cooking while G-Unit kept his eye on the chicken
salad. Finally he finished and packed it into a box sitting on the table along with some
sandwiches which were already packed.
The last item to be made was the fruit salad. Justin grabbed some cans of peaches, fruit
cocktail and pineapple chunks. One can was dented but Justin thought it was fine. The
can wasn’t leaking so it must be OK to use. He added the other fresh fruit and stirred it
with a wooden spoon. It looked so good he just had to taste it, and he licked the wooden
spoon. Justin thought he should add some cinnamon, so he sprinkled it on the salad and
stirred it again with the same wooden spoon. Now all the food was ready and it was time
to change closes and get his mother to take him to the dance.
At the dance Justin was happy to see all the food he prepared disappeared quickly.
Everyone had a great time, but as people started leaving they were getting stomach
cramps…..
After completing the story, click HERE to
continue learning about Sanitation.
OH NO! Justin should NEVER use the dish towel to wipe up the floor!! If
he forgets to put it into the laundry right away, he could spread germs from
the dirty floor to clean dishes!
A better and more sanitary solution would be to use a mop to clean up the
spill on the floor. Click HERE to return to the story.
OH NO! Allowing meat to thaw on the counter can allow bacteria to grow
and multiply in your food.
A better and more sanitary solution would be to thaw meat, fish and
poultry in the refrigerator. Keep HOT foods HOT and COLD foods
COLD! Click HERE to return to the story.
OH NO! JUSTIN!!! Believe your nose! Food that smells spoiled is
probably not safe to use!
Although boiling water might indeed kill any germs, no amount of boiling
can return SPOILED food to a condition that is safe to eat. Click HERE
to return to the story.
OH NO! JUSTIN!!! Keep pets off kitchen counters and tables. They can
spread germs….even G-Unit!
Click HERE to return to the story.
OH NO! Salmonella can grow in cans that are dented or bulging. NEVER
NEVER use foods from dented cans.
Click HERE to return to the story.
OH NO! Justin’s mouth can be a home to millions of bacteria. Never lick a
spoon or taste from a spoon and then put that spoon back into the food.
Use a clean spoon for every taste. Never put a spoon that’s been in your
mouth back into the food you are cooking! Click HERE to return to the story.
Time to learn how to FIGHT BAC!
Right now, there may be an invisible enemy ready to strike. He's called
BAC (bacteria) and he can make people sick. In fact, even though we
can't see BAC - or smell him, or feel him - he and millions more like him
may already be invading food products, kitchen surfaces, knives and other
utensils. But we have the power to Fight BAC! and to keep food safe from
harmful bacteria. It's as easy as following these four simple steps:
CLEAN:
Wash hands and surfaces often.
SEPARATE:
Don’t cross contaminate
COOK: To proper temperatures
CHILL:
Refrigerate promptly.
ASSIGNMENT:
Research the four steps to FIGHT BAC! at this website. When
you have completed your research, write a newspaper article to be
submitted to the school newsletter. This article should inform our
students about what the 4 steps are, why they are important, and
what everyone at school can do to make sure they FIGHT BAC!
and keep food safe from bacteria.
SUMMARY:
Basic rules of kitchen sanitation include practicing good personal
hygiene, keeping the kitchen sanitary and preparing and storing food
properly. By following the guidelines we have just learned, you can
feel more confident that the food prepared in your kitchen is safe to
eat.
Safety is an important part of our everyday lives. By taking the
necessary precautions, you can reduce or eliminate burns, fires, falls,
cuts, electrical shocks, and poisonings in your kitchen. Put safety
first!
IT IS BETTER TO
BE SAFE THAN
SORRY!