Used Cloth as Towel...? NO.....

Have you seen people / are you using the used cloth as towel to rub tables or food equipments?  NO! we should avoid this practice.  Why? Let's check it out -

Used cloth, could be not washed since that last "used".  Imagine, when using it to rub things. How many surfaces were rubbed? How many times it was washed and disinfected after used (or just rinse and dry it?)

Studies show that used cloth contain Escherichia coli, Salmonella and several other pathogens which could cause cross contamination and contaminate food.  What would happen if we consumed these pathogens or toxin? Yeap, it will incurr food poisoning, and can be lethal when over dehydration. 

Anything we could do to avoid the contamination? Yes, definitely...     

1. Use only clean towel and clean it with soap (after use), disinfect by rinsing with hot water and throw it away when the cloth are broken.

2. Separate the cloth usage according to purposes.  It would be nice if can separate with colours. 

3. Could also use disposable towel. 

Credit: Madam Erma Nur Shadila (Food Technologist Officer )

Sustainable Food Business...

Three restaurants at Penang were ordered to closed for 14 days by Penang Town Municipal (MBPP) as the result of cockroaches, mouse body and feces were found in the kitchens, on a Thursday of Feb 2020.  There were also seven compounds being issued after inspecting 6 premises. 

When initiating a food business, food business owners might have a very strong reason to start with, perhaps delicious food, premise's design, strategic locations, fair prices etc etc. We could have a lot of promotions / ways to increase food business, maintain or expand it. However, there is one thing that food business crew should do everyday - to maintain the hygienic of the premise.

when premise (restaurant / cafe / canteen) is not clean, it will attract pest such as cockroaches, mouse and flies to contaminate the premise, equipment and food.  Just imagine, when contamination happens, customers consumed the contaminated food and suffer from food poisoning.  It will have the following impacts -

1. Customers reduced, business reduced
2. Customers help to "promote" the dirty premise
3. Health officers ordered to close premise for 14 days
4. Food Handlers are requested to attend course again.
5. .....

Food Business is like a goose that lay golden eggs. Thus, food business owners should responsible for the food safety and respect their business.  make sure customers enjoy good and safe food. Maintaining clean premise is a habit and should be maintained by every food handlers in a premise. 

When premise, equipment and food is clean, it is one of a strength for food business owners to compete with others.   DO YOU AGREE?    

Credit: Astro AWANI

Are you preparing safe food in your premise?

Food safety is an essential issue when preparing food either for business or family consumption at home.   There are some issues that should be addressed as follow: 

1. Food preparing space should be clean .✅

2. Food preparing space should be distanced from contmination source such as rubbish bin. ✅

3. Equipment used should be clean.✅

4. Food material should be put in the right, save and non-toxic container.✅

5. Always pratising hand washing before preparing food ✅

........ and many more.

Warning❗❗❗

For premise that is preparing food for selling, food handlers who do not comply requirements in food preparing, packaging, and serving as stated at Regulation 36(1)(a). Food Hygiene Regulations 2009, will be incurred

1. Not more that RM10,000  OR

2. Not more than 2 years of imprisonment  

Credit: Food Safety & Quality division, Labuan Federal Territory Health Department.

Which type of cockroaches is normally found in food premises?

Cockroaches is a pest in the order Blattaria or Blattodea. They lives in dark and moisture places such as the closet crevices, underneath of refrigerator, in the closet, below the zinc and faeces tank. 

Cockroaches contaminate food when they are creep on food. The fur of the leg carries and spreading bacteria and viruses, worm eggs, fungus, and dirts.  This will cause food poisoning on the people who consumed the contaminated food.

Besides self controlling on pest in the premise, food business owner could also engage licensed Pest Control Company to control the pest infestation in the food premise. 

If there is presence of pest in the food premise, the enforced officer could order to close the premise, under section 10 & 11, 1983 Food Act, involving issuance of Hygiene Notice and to close the unsanitory food premise. 

Thus, do make sure that food premise is free from pest, mainly the cockroaches, fly and mouse (commonly call in short as LILATI). 

Credit: Food Safety & Quality division, Labuan Federal Territory Health Department

What Hand Washing facility at your food premise should have?

Hand Washing facility is essential to be set at food premises such as canteens, cafeteria, restaurants, Food processing factories etc so that food handlers and / or customers could  wash hands when they feel their hands are dirty.  It is also a requirement in rule 27, 2009 Food hygiene regulations. 

Do take note that hand washing facility should be equipped with the followings         

✅ clean water.

✅    hands free operated water tab. This is to ensure the washed hands are not contaminated by touching the water tab.   

✅ liquid soap. Make sure the soap dispenser always contains liquid soap

✅ tissue paper/ hand dryer. If you are using hand dryer, do make sure the hand dryer is cleaned and maintained. Do not use towel. If you are using tissue paper, do make sure the tissue paper is available all the time. 

✅ hands free rubbish bin.  The type that step by foot to open. 

✅ 7 step hand washing poster. You may obtain free poster from your nearest Health dept, download from google and laminate or purchase the poster produced by our own at merely RM10.

It is important to train food handlers to familiar with the hand washing facility setting so to have hassle free, especially when there is a spot inspection or MeSTI audit. 

Credit: Food Safety & Quality division, Labuan Federal Territory Health Department.

How Grease Trap beneficial to Food Business Owners?

Grease Trap is a container that installed on sink to trap fats and separates fatty oils and grease from water of cooking pans and dirty plates in your kitchen.  Without a grease trap will drive to form fatbergs and blocked pipes.

Without grease trap, the fats continue flow through the pipes and solidify in it.  Eventually it will block the drainage system and causing foul smells.  As the fats solidify, they create a very solid blockage called a fatberg, which can lead to floods of raw sewage in and around your business.  A simple, well-maintained grease trap will capture the fatbergs and stop it entering the sewer and turning into a monster fatberg.

Here are 6 ways a grease trap will help you:

1. Stop blockages in your pipe

2. Eliminating foul odours 

3. Saving money - Avoid spending money to clear the blockages that causing flood on the sewage system.

4. Avoid pest infestation 

5. Avoiding prosecution (from authority)

6. Help keeping you in business

In addition, food business owner can establish good practice of disposal to maintain the grease trap well and reduce maintaining cost. Scraped food and food waste to be put into  garbage can to stop fats, oil, and grease from getting into your kitchen pipes, causing backups. Here are some recommended practices for your reference:

• Install screens under all sinks and drains so the solid waste such as rice, noodles etc that were cook in big quantity.
• Clean up any spills that might occur using a towel and clean in garbage can.  Avoid using mop as the waste will eventually just down the drain.
• Put notice in kitchen that no grease should be poured, swept or washed into the drains.
• Make sure that no hot water at temperatures of 63°C or more is poured down or connected to the drains. If the water is more than 63°C, fats oil and grease will melt and bypass the grease trap straight into the water stream.
• Avoid disposals such as food grinders to get into the pipes, getting clogged and causing future backups.

Installing a grease trap is essential especially in food business such as canteen, restaurants and food processors that produce a lot of oil and solid waste. We do not encourage such waste is threw in the pipes but this is one of the precautions steps to avoid blockage.  For more detail, kindly contact the specialist in this matter.

References:

1. https://www.properoils.co.uk/

2. https://www.mahoneyes.com/blog/understanding-your-grease-trap/

3. http://kualitialamhijau.com/greasetrap.html

Disgusting food premise

 Dirty premise will attracts pest, like mouse and cockroaches.  The presence of mouse could leads to Leptospiosis decease and induce food poisoning.  The decease is lethal and the infected person could died if not treated in early stage.  it would also resulting paralyze and joint pain for long period. 

Thus, food business owner should make sure the hygienic of their premise as the bad environment could affect the health condition of the crew and customers.  

A serious reminder for Food Business owner...

Food business owner may be compounded up to RM2500 under the category of premises under Rule 11 (1) (a).  This rule is read in conjunction with Rule 16 (1) of the Food Hygiene Regulations 2009 as the owner fails to ensure the premises are free of any pests.

Premises that is at high risk for food poisoning may also be closed under the Food Act 1983 section 11, not more than 14 days and if they do not comply with the order, it would be an offense and on conviction could be jailed for a term not exceeding 5 years or fined or both.

Thus, do make sure the food premise is clean and free of PEST so that food business is consistently maintained. 

Credit: Food Safety & Quality Division, Labuan Federal Territory Health Department.

How to manage food waste?

Food waste in kitchen is one of the reason that attract pests. pests such as rats, cockroaches and flies can cause illness and food poisoning.  Therefore, we should clean the cooking area after every cooking.

Food business owners should put food safety and hygiene as the first priority before working on the profit of the business.  Otherwise, they will be big impact on their business.  For example, when customer found some "freebies" on the food, they would have bad impression and might "help to promote the restaurant for FREE".  More serious is when customers suffer from food poisoning and reported to Health department, the premise would be inspected and the business owner might be ordered to close the business. 

The very first step to avoid pest is to make sure all areas in the premise is clean and free from food, leftover food or food waste.  Secondly, make sure there is no holes in the closed area that enable mouse to insert from outside.  Thirdly, make sure the "dead spaces" in the food area (eg. space under the freezers, cabinet etc) could be accessed and cleaned.          

WARNING !!. 

In the premises category under Rule 11 (1) (a), together with Rule 16 (1) of the Food hygiene Regulations 2009, Food business owner may be compounded up to RM 2,500 if they fails to ensure the premises are free from any pests.

Credit: Food Safety & Quality Division, Labuan Federal Territory Health department

Are you using towel correctly?

Towel could be the most dirty thing in kitchen besides the dish washing span. Would you agree and why?

Yes! It is definitely right if we rub dirty surfaces of hands, tables, plates, kitchen equipments and so on with THE SAME TOWEL. It will be even worst if the towel is not washed in a long time until it sting and blacken. If the dirty and wet kitchen towel is left unwashed, it will incurr the source of bacteria growth and resulting the towel become sting.

It is no use in cleaning hands or any equipment but dried with such dirty towel.  Bacteria in the towel will contaminate the cleaned hands or equipmentand eventually, causing food poisoning, after consuming food (Imagine using the dirty equipment or touching food with contaminated hands). So what to do to avoid it? Practise these...

1. Wash kitchen towels after using them for several days. Do not wait until it is smelly.

2. Hang the kitchen towels after using to let it dry.

3. Separate the towels for rubbing hands, plates & bowls and equipment.

4. It would be nice if using paper tissues or hand drying to dry hands. 

When no towels, DO NOT do this >>>>>>>>

Credit: Food safety & Quality Division, Perak State Health Department.     

Would you eat at such place?

A restaurant were spot checked and many terrible situation were found. Do you think the authority should give "0" mark to this restaurant in the premise inspection?  

Yes, it happen that the authority ever give 0 mark to this kind of restaurant.  Well, I believe you would not have appetite to  have food in here after you saw the terrible and disgusting situation. 

Food Handlers should always aware about the food hygiene.  If our premise is not hygiene, we will attract pests to contaminate our premise, equipment and food. When our food are contaminated, it will resulting our customer suffer from food poisoning.  let's see what are the non-conformances in food premise - 

1. Food Handlers is not taking Typhoid vaccination and not attending Food Handlers Training Course. 

2. Food Handlers is not wearing apron, closed shoe (wearing only slippers), have long nails, and wearing accessories when handling food. 

3. Using rubber hose that was allowed touching the floor with water.
4. Dish washing place and glass is put adjacent to drain (that causing odour in the premise) 

5. Do not have proper ventilation and lighting in food preparing area.
6. Using used paper and carton to store raw food and culinary equipment.
7. Putting raw food directly on the floor with water, without storing container or liner 

8. Raw food is not arranged properly according to FIFO (First-in-First-Out) system

9. Not using clean towel and doing varies of cleaning activity with only one (1) tower. 

10. Not registering premise via FOSIM Domestic system before the commencement of food business.  

11. No periodically pest control (Cockrachers, Fly & mouse) in the premise.
12. Culinary equipment is not in proper condition, rusty, chopping board is dirty etc etc.
13. Raw food is stored too closed in freezer.

14. Stagnant water in kitchen.

And many more....

These are perhaps a bunch of food handlers / food premise which is only cares about profits then food safety.  Let us avoid this situation in our food business.  Think about the consistency on food business and make sure food hygiene and safety is taken care of.       

Credit: Food Safety & Quality Division, Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Health Department

Why should we label the storage of food?

What do you think about the news?  How could noodles contain pesticide? 

it is apparently the raw food and the food for cooking is not labelled.  Although it is a small matter that many food handlers might ignore, failing to do so could cause food handlers mis-taken the hazardous item / chemical to cook.    

Further more, if mis-put detergent powder, thinner or pesticide like carbamate in the food while cooking, it will be dentrimental to the consumers.  On 2016 at Batu Gajah, Perak, a person died after consuming food which is contaminated by carbamate (a kind of pesticide).  From this incident, we could imagine how sad of the victim's family and how guilty does the cook felt.  Thus, as Food handlers, we do not want this to happen on our customers or us. 

The above photo shows that the food is put into container but there is no label, and the food is wraped with newspaper.  If we are not putting label, we might forget to put in the correct ingredient into the food or for consumption.  Furthermore, the newspaper contain chemical and the ink of letter could contaminate the food that is wrapped.

Food labeling is important as an indicator of each food that we are storing.  It is good also to write storage date on the label so that food handlers know how long does the food is stored and used. Label should be out on the container body and not the cap.  it is Food handlers' responsibility to make sure the food are save, fresh and clean.   

Credit: Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Health department, Food Safety & Quality Division

Food premise's surrounding Cleanliness

The cleanliness and safety of Food premise's Surrounding is important in preparing food. 

The Hygiene aspect of food handling includes Food handlers, Raw Food, Equipment, and the cleanliness of kitchen surrounding or the food preparing place.  When the Food premise's surrounding is not in order, it can contribute cross contamination and would become a cause of food poisoning.

Credit: Food Safety & Quality Division, Labuan Federal Territory Health Department

Premise Inspection

The followings are common non-conformances that Health Department found in restaurant.  let us study together and be alert about it -

1. There is no pest (Cockroaches, Flies and mouse) controls scheduled in the premise.  Pest can spread disease via food and resulting food poisoning to human being. 

2. The equipment  /tools are not in good condition or rusty.  Towel and chopping board are not clean.  The dirty and broken equipment or tool could be a root cause of bacteria growth and pest. 

3. In freeze storing, Raw food is kept too close in one another and touching the opened container.  Cross contamination could happen from raw food to cooked food, even though it is put in freezer.  

4. Stagnant water in kitchen where the water could be splashed onto food, when food handler is walking or preparing food.  This result the food is contaminated.

Hence, do remember to keep your premise clean always, as the officer could inspect ANYTIME...

         

Credit: Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Health Department, Food Safety & Quality Division

Food Handling

Before we are handling food, do make sure the followings - 

1. Short nails - If our nails are long, please cut them as long nails can trap dirts and bacteria.

2. Not wearing accessories - No rings, watch, ear rings as we can't noticed if they are fall on food.  Besides, the accessories coul deasily trap dirts and bacteria.

3. No make up - Make up and perfume are chemicals that could contaminating food while handling food.

Also, food handlers should also wearing correct attire and avoid bad practices such as coughing and sneezing on food, smoking, touching food with bare hands etc etc. 

      

Picture credit to Sir Sazly Tulih (Facebook user)