Describe the rules of personal and kitchen hygiene when preparing food and explain how they prevent food contamination

What this dot point is asking

SEAB wants you to describe the rules of personal and kitchen hygiene when preparing food and to explain how they prevent food from being contaminated. The big idea is that harmful bacteria are the danger, and good hygiene stops them getting from our bodies, surfaces and raw foods into the food we eat. The key term is cross-contamination. The marks come from clear rules and from explaining what each rule prevents.

The answer

Why hygiene matters

Food poisoning is caused by harmful bacteria getting into food and multiplying. These bacteria come from people (hands, hair, coughs), from dirty surfaces and equipment, from pests, and from raw foods such as raw meat. Good hygiene breaks these routes.

Personal hygiene rules

When preparing food, a person should:

• Wash hands with soap and warm water before handling food, after using the toilet, and after touching raw meat, the bin or their face.
• Tie back long hair and wear a clean apron.
• Cover any cuts with a waterproof plaster (often brightly coloured).
• Not cough or sneeze over food, and not handle food when ill with a stomach upset.
• Keep fingernails short and clean and avoid touching food more than necessary.

Kitchen hygiene rules

The kitchen and equipment must also be clean:

• Wash surfaces, chopping boards and utensils with hot water and detergent before and after use.
• Wipe up spills straight away so bacteria cannot grow.
• Use clean cloths and change them often.
• Keep pests and pets out of the kitchen.
• Cover food and keep bins covered and emptied regularly.

Cross-contamination

Cross-contamination is the transfer of harmful bacteria from one food to another, usually from raw food (such as raw meat or chicken) to ready-to-eat food, by way of hands, surfaces, chopping boards or utensils. It is prevented by:

• Using separate chopping boards (and knives) for raw meat and for vegetables or ready-to-eat food.
• Washing hands between handling raw and cooked food.
• Storing raw meat below ready-to-eat food in the fridge so drips cannot fall onto it.

Examples in context

Example 1. Preparing a raw chicken dish at home. When making Hainanese chicken rice, the cook handles raw chicken that can carry salmonella. Using a separate board for the raw chicken, washing hands and the board before touching the cucumber garnish or cooked rice, and cooking the chicken thoroughly all prevent the harmful bacteria reaching the ready-to-eat parts of the meal, a clear case of avoiding cross-contamination.

Example 2. Hawker stall hygiene rules. Hawkers in Singapore must keep their stalls clean, wash hands, keep raw and cooked food apart, and cover food, which is why stalls display hygiene grades. These rules protect the many customers a stall serves, showing the same hygiene principles applied on a larger scale than the home kitchen.

Try this

Q1. State three rules of personal hygiene when preparing food. [3 marks]

• Cue. Any three of: wash hands with soap, tie back hair and wear an apron, cover cuts, do not cough or sneeze over food, do not prepare food when ill.

Q2. Explain what is meant by cross-contamination. [2 marks]

• Cue. The transfer of harmful bacteria from one food (usually raw) to another (usually ready-to-eat), via hands, surfaces or utensils.

Q3. Explain how using separate chopping boards for raw meat and vegetables prevents food poisoning. [2 marks]

• Cue. Raw meat bacteria are not transferred onto the board for vegetables or ready-to-eat food, so they do not contaminate food that will not be cooked further.