
Keeping Food Safe
Chapter 2
What is a Foodborne Illness?
Foodborne illnesses are caused by agents that enter the body
through the ingestion of food.
 A foodborne illness outbreak is when two or more people get
the same illness after eating the same food
 No long-term health threat to average person
 Reaction may occur in a few hours or up to several days after
exposure
Symptoms
 Abdominal cramps, headache, vomiting, diarrhea (may be
bloody), fever, death
What is the Cost of Foodborne Illness?

Loss of customers and sales

Negative media exposure

Lawsuits and legal fees

Increase insurance premiums

Loss of reputation

Lowered employee moral

Employee absenteeism

Staff retraining
High Risk Populations Affected
 Those that have a higher risk of getting a foodborne
illness:
 Immune system is the body’s defense system
against foodborne illnesses
 Elderly people
 Infants and pre-school aged children
 Pregnant women
 People with cancer or on chemotherapy
 People with HIV/AIDS
 Transplant recipients
What is the Impact of Foodborne Illness?
In the US annually:
 76 million cases of foodborne diseases
 325,000 hospitalization
 5,000 deaths
 [fast fact]
 The US Department of Agriculture Economic Research
Services developed a calculator to determine actual cost
of a foodborne illness
 www.ers/usda.gov/Data/FoodbornIllness/
Key Terms
 Hazard
 Something with the
potential to cause harm
 Contamination
 That harmful things are
present in food, making it
unsafe to eat
 Pathogens
 Microorganisms that cause
illness from your body to
food
 Time Temperature Abuse
 Allowing food to stay too
long at temperatures that
cause pathogens
 Cross Contamination
 Transfers pathogens from
one surface or food to
another
Forms of Contaminaton
 Types of Hazards


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Biological
Chemical
Physical
 Contamination
 Harmful things are present in food making it unsafe to eat
 Poor personal hygiene transfers pathogens from body to food
 Time-temperature abuse
 Cross-contamination
 Poor cleaning and sanitizing of work stations
 Purchasing from unapproved suppliers
What are Microorganisms?
 Microorganisms are small, living organisms that can be
seen only through a microscope
 There are 4 types of pathogens




Viruses
Bacteria
Parasites
Fungi
FAT-TOM
 Food
 Acidity


Pathogens grow best in
food that contains little OR
no acid
 Temperature

 Time
Temperature danger zone
41°F – 135 °F
The longer food is in the
temperature danger zone,
the more time pathogens
have to grow
 Oxygen

Some need oxygen to
grow. Others grow when
oxygen isn’t there.
 Moisture
Food most likely to become TCS abused
TCS- time control for safety
 Milk and dairy
 Meat

Beef, pork, lamb
 Eggs
 Poultry
 Fish
 Shellfish and Crustaceans
 Baked potatoes
 Heat-treated plant food

Cooked rice, beans
 Tofu or soy protein
 Sprouts and sprout seeds
 Sliced melons and tomatoes
 Untreated garlic and oil
mixtures
Time/Temperature Danger Zone
 41-135 degrees F
 Major growth through 70-125
degrees F
Biological Contamination

Viruses

Transfer of Viruses and Prevention
 Transferring of Viruses
 Prevention
 Examples of a virus
Bacteria

Bacteria

Can multiply rapidly in favorable conditions

Can cause illness by producing toxins in food

May be carried by a variety of means:





Food
Water
Soil
Humans
Insects

Some can survive freezing

Know FAT-TOM to prevent bacterial foodborne illnesses

Examples include Salmonella, E. Coli, and Clostridium Botulinum
Parasites

Parasites in Food?
 Need a host to survive
 Grow naturally in many animals
 Cows
 Chickens
 Pigs
 Fish
 Can also grow on a plant
Fungi

Not a Real Fun-Guy...
 Molds




Most commonly spoils food
Grows well in food with naturally high acidic levels
Produces toxins that can make people sick
Intentionally added to cheeses (Blue cheese, Brie)
 Yeasts
 Spoil food quickly
 Signs of spoilage
 Smell
 Taste of alcohol
 Pink discoloration
 Slime or bubbles
Chemical Contamination

Chemical Contamination
 Hazards that are dangerous to foods
 Cleaning supplies
 Pesticides
 Toxic Metals
 Lead
 Copper
 Zing
 Preventing contamination
 Store chemicals away from food, utensils, and
equipment used for food
Physical Contamination

Physical Contamination
 When objects get into food
 Metal shavings from cans
 Glass from broken light bulbs
 Fingernails, hair, bandages
 Jewelry
 Fruit pits
 Prevention Inspect food closely, practice good hygiene, and
follow preparation procedures
Food Allergens

Major food allergens








Milk and dairy
Eggs and egg products
Fish
Shellfish
Soy and soy products
Peanuts
Tree nuts
Preventing an allergic reaction




Tell the customer how each dish is made
Tell the customer about any “secret” ingredients that may contain
allergens
Suggest alternative menu items that don’t have the food allergen
Avoid cross-contact
Contamination of Food
 Having a foodborne illness
 Having wounds that contain a pathogen
 Having contact with a person that is ill
 Touching faces, hair, or bodies and not washing hands
after
 Having symptoms of illness
 Touching anything that may contaminate food
 Eating, drinking, or chewing gum/tobacco while
preparing food
Personal Cleanliness
 Always cover your hair
 Wear clean clothing everyday
 Remove aprons or coats and store in the correct
places
 Remove jewelry from hands and arms
 Only a single, plain band may be worn
Washing your Hands
 After leaving the restroom
 Handling raw meat, poultry, and seafood
 Touching hair, face, or body
 Eating, drinking, or smoking
 Handling chemicals
 Removed jewelry from hands and arms
Proper Hand Washing… and no you don’t do it
right
 Wet hands and arms with water as hot as you can
stand it
 Apply soap, enough to build up a good lather
 Scrub hands and arms vigorously
 Rinse hands and arms
 Dry with a single-use paper towel or warm-air dryer
Handling Ready-to-Eat (RTE) Foods
 RTE foods are foods that you do not need to cook I
order to consume
 Use gloves, tongs, and/or deli tissue
 Create a barrier between you and the food
To Stay Home or Not To Stay Home?
 Severe sore throat
 Has 1 or more illness symptoms
 Been diagnosed with a foodborne illness
Don’t Cross-Contaminate
 Work surfaces, knives, and cutting
boards are clean and sanitized
 Do NOT allow RTE foods to touch the
surfaces that had raw meat on them
 Use separate cutting boards and
knives for RTE foods and raw meat
What to do?
 If food has been in the
temperature danger zone for
more than 4 hours, throw it
out.
Thermometers

Bimetallic Stemmed Thermometers



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Thermocouples and Thermistors

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
0-220°F
Hot and Cold foods
Insert into the thickest part of the food
Probe and screen
Can be inserted into food and liquids
Surface probes can check the temperature of flat cooking
equipment
Air probes can check the temperature of coolers and ovens
Infrared Thermometers

Checks food and surface temperatures
Time Temperature Abused?
 Abnormal color
 Slimy, sticky, or dry
 Soft flesh that leaves an
imprint
 Abnormal or unpleasant
odor
FIFO
 First In, First
Out
Ready-to-Eat
Seafood
Whole Cuts Beef
or Pork
Ground
Meat/Ground
Fish
Whole or Ground Poultry
Thawing Foods
 Refrigerator
 Potable Running Water
 Microwave
 Cooking
Proper Internal Temperature
Food
Temperature
Poultry (whole or ground)
165 for 15 seconds
Ground Meat (beef or pork or lamb)
155 for 15 seconds
Seafood, Eggs
145 for 15 seconds
Processed or RTE for holding
135
Fruit, Veggies, Grains, Legumes for
holding
135
Safe Temperature to hold hot foods is 135 or higher
Cooling Foods

Cool from 135-41 or lower
within 6 hours

 1. 135-70 within 2 hours

 2. Cool to 41 or lower over

next 4 hours.
** Pathogens grow faster
between 125 and 70F
Small containers in Ice
Water Bath
Ice Paddle
Reduce the size of the
container
Serving

Hold dishes at the bottom or
edge

Carry glasses on rack or tray

Hold flatware by handle

Minimize bare-hand contact

Use ice scoops or tongs
HACCP – Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point
 The Seven Principles
 Conduct a Hazard Analysis
 Identify menu items that contain potentially
hazardous food
 Recognize the flow of this food through your
operation
 Identify possible hazards
 Determine Critical Control Points
 Points in the flow where possible hazards can be
prevented, eliminated, or reduced to safe levels
 There may be more than one CCP for each menu item
HACCP
 Establish Critical Limits
 Cook food to appropriate internal Temperature
 Hold cooked food at or above 135
 Hold cold food at or below 41
 Reheat foods to 165 for 15 seconds
 Establish monitoring procedures
 Determine the best ways to monitor CCPs
 Identify who will monitor CCPs and how often
 Identify corrective actions
 Steps to be taken when a critical limit is not met
 Continue cooking food
 Throw out
HACCP
 Verify that the system works
 Review records and logs
 Determine if hazards are effectively prevented,
reduced, or eliminated
 Establish procedures for record keeping and
documentation
 Build a source of information about daily operations
and trends
 Can be used to identify problem areas
OSHA – Occupational Safety and Health
Administration
 Governs rules and regulations that are enforced to
ensure that all employees in an establishment are
working in a place that emphasizes safety.
What’s the difference?
Cleaning
 Removes food and other dirt
from surface
Sanitizing
 Reduces pathogens on
surfaces to safe levels
 Two Methods:


Heat: 171 degree water for
30 seconds
Chemical: chlorine, iodine,
etc.
 Rinse, swab, spray, rinse
3 Compartment Sinks
 Rinse (scrape or soak)
 Wash (water 110 degrees F)
 Rinse
 Sanitize
 Air-Dry
Integrated Pest Management Program
 Deny pests access to the operation
 Deny pests food, water, and a hiding/nesting place
 Work with a licensed pest control operator to get
rid of pests that do enter the operation