FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE

TO FOOD BORNE ILLNESS

Time and temperature abuse

Poor personal hygiene and improper hand washing

Cross contamination

Contaminated ready to eat foods such as salad items and processed meats.

Why Use a Food Thermometer?

Using a food thermometer is the only reliable way to ensure safety and to determine desired “doneness” of meat, poultry, and egg products. To be safe, these foods must be cooked to a safe minimum internal temperature to destroy any harmful microorganisms that may be in the food.

“Doneness” refers to when a food is cooked to a desired state and indicates the sensory aspects of foods such as texture, appearance, and juiciness.

How to measure food temperatures?

Maintaining safe food temperatures is an essential and effective part of food safety management.

Food Temperature

Food temperature measuring devices typically measure food temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit(F˚) or degrees Celsius

Temperature Measuring Devices

Thermometer- used to measure internal food temperatures at every stage of food preparation.

Measures temperatures ranging from 0˚F

(-18 ˚C) to 220 ˚ F ( 104 ˚C)

Digital Display the Temperature numerically.

Measures a wider range of temperatures than a dial faced.

Dial-Faced –most common type of thermometer used.

Dial faced thermometer

DIGITAL TYPE OF THERMOMETER

thermocouple

Provides a digital read out of the temperature and has a variety of interchangeable probes for different application

Infrared

Measures the outer surface temperature of food without actually touching the food.

Can measure many different products without cross contamination.

Check the accuracy frequently.

T sticks (melt device)

Single use disposable thermometer measures only one temperature

Used to monitor product temperatures and sanitizing temperature in dishwashing machines

Built in

Refrigerated and frozen cases contain built in thermometer to check temperatures for food storage.

When monitoring only raw foods or only cooked foods being held at 140 ˚F wipe the stem of the thermometer with an swab between measurements.

Thermometer guidelines

Clean and sanitize thermometers properly to avoid contaminating food that is being tested. This is very important when testing raw and then ready to eat food, wipe off any food particles, place the stem or probe in sanitizing solution for at least 5 seconds then air dry.

When to calibrate Thermometer

Before their first use

At regular interval

If dropped

If used to measure extreme temperatures

Whenever accuracy is in question

Adapted from Purdue University, Hospitality & Tourism Management

Rules For Using the Thermometer

Keep the thermometer and its case clean

Wash, rinse, sanitize & air dry after every use

When measuring an item,

insert probe through the thickest part of the item

insert deep enough to pass the dimple or sensing area of the thermometer

Calibrate regularly to insure its accuracy

Adapted from Purdue University, Hospitality & Tourism Management

Rules For Using the Thermometer

Keep the thermometer and its case clean

Wash, rinse, sanitize & air dry after every use

When measuring an item,

insert probe through the thickest part of the item

insert deep enough to pass the dimple or sensing area of the thermometer

Calibrate regularly to insure its accuracy

THE HAZARD ANALYSIS CRITICAL CONTROL POINT (HACCP)

The HACCP food

safety system the

greatest amount of

attention is placed on

food and how it is

handled during storage,

preparation and

service.

The HACCP food safety system

is being recommended as the

best method for ensuring food

safety system in retail

establishment.

A sanitary environment is important for safe food production, but can still be contaminated by employees if they do not use proper food handling techniques, practice good personal hygiene or control food temperature properly.

The HACCP system helps food managers identify and control potential problems before they happen. The primary goal is always the same production of safe and wholesome food.

A HACCP food safety system is most effective when tailored to the specific needs of the retail food establishment. It is designed to provide flexibility to the food establishment when controlling the hazards that cause food borne illness.

BENEFITS OF HACCP

1. The HACCP system enables food managers to identify the foods and processes that are most likely to cause food borne illness

2. The HACCP system more accurately describes the over all condition of the establishment.

SEVEN PRINCIPLES IN A HAZARD ANALYSIS CRITICAL CONTROL POINT

PRINCIPLE 1. HAZARD ANALYSIS

The first principle in a HACCP is hazard analysis. This involves identifying hazards that might be introduced to food by certain food production practices or the intended use of the product. Hazard analysis starts thorough review of your menu or product list to identify all of the potentially hazardous foods you serve.

Example of PHF

meat

Dairy products

Poultry, eggs

Cooked foods such as beans , pasta, rice and potatoes

cut cantaloupe and raw seed sprouts

All of these foods are commonly found in food establishment.

CANTALOUPE

PHF have properties that support rapid bacterial growth and can cause the food to become unsafe.

Hazards may be biological, chemical or in physical in nature. These hazards are frequently introduced into the food by people, poor food handling and contaminated equipment

During the hazard analysis step, you should also estimate risk.

RISK is the probability that a condition or conditions will lead to a hazard.

Factors that influence risk:

Type of costumers served

Types of foods on the menu

Nature of the organism

Past outbreaks

Size and type of food production operations

Extent of employee training

Hazards that pose little or no risk or are unlikely to occur, need not be addressed by your HACCP system.

The severity of a hazard is defined by the degree of seriousness of the consequences, should it become a reality.

Breakfast

Orange juice grape fruit

Oatmeal shredded wheat

Scrambled eggs bacon sausage links

French toast cheese omelet

Belgian waffle breakfast burrito

Strawberries raisin bran

Pancake egg beaters

Apple Juice wheat toast

hash browns sausage gravy

cream of wheat

LUNCH

Apple sauce potato salad

Chili clam chowder

French fries pork tenderloin

Chicken fillet chicken wings

Pasta salad spinach salad

Navy bean soup vegetable soup

Hamburgers fish fillet

Ham and cheese Corned beef and Swiss

DINNER

Tossed salad Cottage cheese

Bake potato wild rice

Country fried steak liver and onion

Frozen yogurt cherry pie

Coffee milk

Cobb salad tuna salad in tomato

Broccoli and cheese melon balls

Turkey/ dressing meat loaf

Chocolate brownie angel food cake

Iced tea soft drinks

Breakfast

Orange juice grape fruit

Oatmeal shredded wheat

Scrambled eggs bacon sausage links

French toast cheese omelette

Belgian waffle breakfast burrito

Strawberries raisin bran

Pancake egg beaters

Apple Juice wheat toast

hash browns sausage gravy

cream of wheat bacon

LUNCH

Apple sauce potato salad

Chili clam chowder

French fries pork tenderloin

Chicken fillet chicken wings

Pasta salad spinach salad

Navy bean soup vegetable soup

Hamburgers fish fillet

Ham and cheese

Corned beef and Swiss

DINNER

Tossed salad Cottage cheese

Bake potato wild rice

Country fried steak liver and onion

Frozen yogurt cherry pie

Coffee milk

Cobb salad tuna salad in tomato

Broccoli and cheese melon balls

Turkey/ dressing meat loaf

Chocolate brownie angel food cake

Iced tea soft drinks

The last phase of the hazard analysis step involves establishing preventive measures.

Preventive measures include:

Controlling the temperature of the food.

Cross contamination control

Good personal hygiene practices

Other procedures that can prevent, minimize or eliminate an identified health hazard.

Traditionally, HACCP deals only with preventive measures that can be easily monitored. Since food temperature and time can be easily monitored, they are the preventive measures used most often in HACCP.

PRINCIPLE 2: IDENTIFYING CRITICAL CONTROL POINT

The second principle in creating a HACCP system is to identify the critical control point in food production. A critical control point is an operation (practice, preparation step, or procedure) in the flow of food which will prevent, eliminate or reduce hazards to acceptable level.

A critical control point provides a kill step that will destroy bacteria or a control step that prevents or slows down the rate of bacterial growth.

Examples of CCPs

Cooking, reheating, and hot holding

Chilling, chilled storage and chilled display

Receiving, thawing, mixing ingredients and other food handling stages

Purchasing seafood and ready to eat foods where further processing would not prevent a hazard, from approved sources.

The most commonly used CCPs are cooking, cooling reheating and hot/cold holding. Cooking and reheating to proper temperatures will destroy bacteria, whereas proper cooling , hot holding and cold holding will prevent or slow down the rate of bacteria.

Food and drug administration (FDA) food code recognizes specific food handling and sanitation practices, prevention of food contamination and certain aspects of employee and environmental hygiene as critical control point. Therefore many food establishment operators prefers to think of them as standard operating procedures (SOP) or house policies rather that CCPs..

CCP’s are considered to be operations that involve:

Time

Temperature

Acidity

Purchasing and receiving related to

seafood

modified atmosphere packaged foods

ready to eat food

SOPs include:

Good employee hygiene

Cross contamination control

Environmental hygiene practices

PRINCIPLE 3

Establish the Critical Limits which must be Met at each Critical Control Point

Application of this principle involves considering what should be to reduce the hazard risk to safe levels. Set critical limits t make sure that each critical control point effectively blocks a biological, chemical or physical hazard.

CRITICAL LIMITS should be thought of as the upper and lower boundaries of food safety.

CRITICAL LIMIT BOUNDARIES OF FOOD SAFETY

Time Limit the amount of time food is in thetemperature danger zone during preparation and service processes to 4 hours or less

Temperature Keep potentially hazardous foods at below 41 F or at above 140 F. Maintain specific cooking, cooling, reheating and hot holding.

Water Activity Foods with a water activity or.85 or less do not support growth of disease causing bacteria.

pH Disease causing bacteria do not grow in foods that have a pH of 4.6 or below

Principle 4- Establish Procedure to Monitor CCPs

In each food establishment, someone should be responsible for monitoring critical control points. To monitor, make observations and measurements to determine whether a critical control point is under control.

For example, monitoring tells you whether or not the internal temperature of poultry has reached 165 F or above for 15 seconds.

The risk of food borne illness increases when a critical control point is not met. Monitoring is a critical part of HACCP system and provides written documentation that can be used to verify that the HACCP system is working well.

Principle 5-Establish the corrective action

to be taken when monitoring shows that a critical limit has been exceeded.

If you detect that a critical limit was exceeded during the production of a HACCP monitored food, correct the problem immediately. The flow of food should not continue until all CCPs have been met.

Taking immediate corrective action is vital to the effectiveness of your food safety system.

PRINCIPLE 6-ESTABLISH PROCEDURES TO VERIFY THAT THE HACCP SYSTEM IS WORKING

Principle 6 in the HACCP system is verifying that your system is working properly.

The verification process typically consists of two phases.

1. You must verify that the critical control point you have established for your CCPs will prevent eliminate or reduce hazards to acceptable levels.

2. Verify that the overall HACCP plan is functioning effectively.

PRINCIPLE 7-ESTABLISHED AN EFFECTIVE RECORD KEEPING SYSTEM THAT DOCUMENT THE HACCP SYSYTEM

An effective HACCP system requires the development and maintenance of a written HACCP plan. The plan should provide as much information as possible about the hazards associated with each individual food item or group of food item covered by the system.

FOOD DATING

Food Dating

"Open Dating" (use of a calendar date as opposed to a code) on a food product is a date stamped on a product's package to help the store determine how long to display the product for sale. It can also help the purchaser to know the time limit to purchase or use the product at its best quality.

Is dating required by federal law?

Except for infant formula , product dating is not generally required by Federal regulations. However, if a calendar date is used, it must express both the month and day of the month (and the year, in the case of shelf-stable and frozen products).

What types of food are dated?

Open dating is found primarily on perishable foods such as meat, poultry, eggs and dairy products. "Closed" or "coded" dating might appear on shelf-stable products such as cans and boxes of food.

Types of Dates

A "Sell-By" date tells the store how long to display the product for sale. You should buy the product before the date expires.

A "Best if Used By (or Before)" date is recommended for best flavor or quality. It is not a purchase or safety date.

A "Use-By" date is the last date recommended for the use of the product while at peak quality. The date has been determined by the manufacturer of the product.

"Closed or coded dates" are packing numbers for use by the manufacturer.

Safety After Date Expires

Except for "use-by" dates, product dates don't always pertain to home storage and use after purchase. "Use-by" dates usually refer to best quality and are not safety dates. Even if the date expires during home storage, a product should be safe, wholesome and of good quality if handled properly. See the accompanying refrigerator charts for storage times of dated products. If product has a "use-by" date, follow that date. If product has a "sell-by" date or no date, cook or freeze the product according to the times on the chart below.

Foods can develop an off odor, flavor or appearance due to spoilage bacteria. If a food has developed such characteristics, you should not use it for quality reasons.

If foods are mishandled, however, foodbornebacteria can grow and, if pathogens are present, cause foodborne illness — before or after the date on the package. For example, if hot dogs are taken to a picnic and left out several hours, they will not be safe if used thereafter, even if the date hasn't expired.

Other examples of potential mishandling are products that have been: defrosted at room temperature more than two hours; cross contaminated; or handled by people who don't practice good sanitation. Make sure to follow the handling and preparation instructions on the label to ensure top quality and safety.

Dating Infant Formula

Federal regulations require a "use-by" date on the product label of infant formula under FDA inspection. If consumed by that date, the formula or food must contain not less than the quantity of each nutrient as described on the label. Formula must maintain an acceptable quality to pass through an ordinary bottle nipple. If stored too long, formula can separate and clog the nipple.

The "use-by" date is selected by the manufacturer, packer or distributor of the product on the basis of product analysis throughout its shelf life, tests, or other information. It is also based on the conditions of handling, storage, preparation, and use printed on the label. Do not buy or use baby formula after its "use-by" date.

What do can codes mean?

Cans must exhibit a packing code to enable tracking of the product in interstate commerce. This enables manufacturers to rotate their stock as well as to locate their products in the event of a recall.

These codes, which appear as a series of letters and/or numbers, might refer to the date or time of manufacture. They aren't meant for the consumer to interpret as "use-by" dates. There is no book or Web site that tells how to translate the codes into dates.

Cans may also display "open" or calendar dates. Usually these are "best if used by" dates for peak quality.

Canned foods are safe indefinitely as long as they are not exposed to freezing temperatures, or temperatures above 90 °F (32.2° C). If the cans look ok, they are safe to use. Discard cans that are dented, rusted, or swollen. High-acid canned foods (tomatoes, fruits) will keep their best quality for 12 to 18 months; low-acid canned foods (meats, vegetables) for 2 to 5 years.

UPC or Bar CodesUniversal Product Codes appear on packages as

black lines of varying widths above a series of numbers. They are not required by regulation but manufacturers print them on most product labels because scanners at supermarkets can "read" them quickly to record the price at checkout.

Bar codes are used by stores and manufacturers for inventory purposes and marketing information. When read by a computer, they can reveal such specific information as the manufacturer's name, product name, size of product and price. The numbers are not used to identify recalled products.

Storage Times

Since product dates aren't a guide for safe use of a product, how long can the consumer store the food and still use it at top quality? Follow these tips:

Purchase the product before the date expires.

If perishable, take the food home immediately after purchase and refrigerate it promptly. Freeze it if you can't use it within times recommended on chart.

Once a perishable product is frozen, it doesn't matter if the date expires because foods kept frozen continuously are safe indefinitely.

Follow handling recommendations on product.

Refrigerator Home Storage (at 40 °F [4.4 ºC] or below) of Fresh or Uncooked Products If product has a "use-by" date, follow that

date.

If product has a "sell-by" date or no date, cook or freeze the product by the times on the following chart.

Refrigerator Storage of Fresh or Uncooked ProductsProductStorage Times After Purchase Refrigerator Storage of Fresh or Uncooked

ProductsProductStorage Times After Purchase

Poultry1 or 2 daysBeef,

Veal, Pork and Lamb3 to 5 days

Ground Meat and Ground Poultry1 or 2 days

Fresh Variety Meats (Liver, Tongue, Brain, Kidneys, Heart, Chitterlings)1 or 2 days

Cured Ham, Cook-Before-Eating5 to 7 days

Sausage from Pork, Beef or Turkey, Uncooked1 or 2 daysEggs3 to 5 weeks

REFRIGERATOR HOME STORAGE (AT 40 °F [4.4 ºC] OR BELOW) OF PROCESSED PRODUCTS SEALED AT PLANT

If product has a "use-by" date, follow that date.

If product has a "sell-by" or no date, cook or freeze the product by the times on the following chart.

Processed Product Unopened, After Purchase After Opening

Cooked Poultry 3 to 4 days 3 to 4 days

Cooked Sausage 3 to 4 days 3 to 4 days

Sausage, Hard/Dry, shelf-stable

6 weeks/pantry 3 weeks

Corned Beef, uncooked, in pouch with pickling juices

5 to 7 days 3 to 4 days

Vacuum-packed Dinners, Commercial Brand with USDA seal

2 weeks 3 to 4 days

Bacon 2 weeks 7 days

Hot dogs 2 weeks 1 week

Luncheon meat 2 weeks 3 to 5 days

Ham, fully cooked 7 daysslices, 3 days; whole, 7 days

Ham, canned, labeled"keep refrigerated"

9 months 3 to 4 days

Ham, canned, shelf stable 2 years/pantry 3 to 5 days

Canned Meat and Poultry, shelf stable

2 to 5 years/pantry 3 to 4 days