Courtesy : School of Hospitality and Catering Design

Food safety (or food hygiene) is used as a scientific method/discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent food-borne illness. The occurrence of two or more cases of a similar illness resulting from the ingestion of a common food is known as a food-borne disease outbreak. This includes a number of routines that should be followed to avoid potential health hazards. In this way, food safety often overlaps with food defense to prevent harm to consumers. The tracks within this line of thought are safety between industry and the market and then between the market and the consumer. In considering industry to market practices, food safety considerations include the origins of food including the practices relating to food labeling, food hygiene, food additives and pesticide residues, as well as policies on biotechnology and food and guidelines for the management of governmental import and export inspection and certification systems for foods. In considering market to consumer practices, the usual thought is that food ought to be safe in the market and the concern is safe delivery and preparation of the food for the consumer. Food safety, nutrition and food security are closely related. Unhealthy food creates a cycle of disease and malnutrition that affects infants and adults as well. # ISO certification in India

Food can transmit pathogens which can result in the illness or death of the person or other animals. The main types of pathogens are bacteria, viruses, parasites, and fungus. Food can also serve as a growth and reproductive medium for pathogens. In developed countries there are intricate standards for food preparation, whereas in lesser developed countries there are fewer standards and less enforcement of those standards. Even so, in the US, in 1999, 5,000 deaths per year were related to foodborne pathogens.  Another main issue is simply the availability of adequate safe water, which is usually a critical item in the spreading of diseases. In theory, food poisoning is 100% preventable. However this cannot be achieved due to the number of persons involved in the supply chain, as well as the fact that pathogens can be introduced into foods no matter how many precautions are taken.# ISO certification in India

Food contamination

Food contamination happens when foods are corrupted with another substance. It can happen In the process of production, transportation, packaging, storage, sales, and cooking process. Contamination can be physical, chemical, or biological.

Physical contamination

Physical contaminants (or ‘foreign bodies’) are objects such as hair, plant stalks or pieces of plastic and metal. When a foreign object enters food, it is a physical contaminant. If the foreign objects are bacteria, both a physical and biological contamination will occur.

Common sources of physical contaminations are: hair, glass or metal, pests, jewelry, dirt, and fingernails.# ISO certification in India

Physical food contamination is a hazardous yet natural accident of contaminating food with dangerous objects around the kitchen or production base when being prepared. If kitchens or other places where food may be prepared are unsanitary, it is very likely that physical contamination will occur and cause negative consequences. Dangerous objects such as glass and wire may be found in food which can cause many issues with the individuals who consume it including choking, breaking of teeth and cutting the insides of the body. Children and the elderly are at the highest risk of being harmed by food contamination due to their weaker immune systems and fragile structures.  The most common reasoning for physical contamination to occur is when the food is left uncovered without lids. To prevent such contamination and harm to those consuming food from restaurants, cooks are recommended to wear hair nets, remove jewelry, and wear gloves when necessary, especially over wounds with bandages.# ISO certification in India

Chemical contamination

Chemical contamination happens when food is contaminated with a natural or artificial chemical substance. Common sources of chemical contamination can include: pesticides, herbicides, veterinary drugs, contamination from environmental sources (water, air or soil pollution), cross-contamination during food processing, migration from food packaging materials, presence of natural toxins, or use of unapproved food additives and adulterants.# ISO certification in India

Biological contamination

It happens when the food has been contaminated by substances produced by living creatures, such as humans, rodents, pests or microorganisms. This includes bacterial contamination, viral contamination, or parasite contamination that is transferred through saliva, pest droppings, blood or fecal matter. Bacterial contamination is the most common cause of food poisoning worldwide. If an environment is high in starch or protein, water, oxygen, has a neutral pH level, and maintains a temperature between 5°C and 60°C (danger zone) for even a brief period of time (~0–20 minutes), bacteria are likely to survive

Example of biological contamination: Tainted Romaine Lettuce

In April and May 2018, 26 states in the United States suffered an outbreak of the bacteria strain E. coli O157:H7. Several investigations show the contamination might have come from the Yuma, Arizona, growing region. This outbreak, which began April 10, is the largest US flare-up of E. coli in a decade. One person in California has died. At least 14 of the people affected developed kidney failure. The most common symptoms of E. coli include diarrhea, bloody diarrhea, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting.# ISO certification in India