HOW TO PREVENT FOOD CONTAMINATION

The CONTAMINATION of food can occur at any time from primary production such as harvesting, processing through the industrial level, and even when preparing food at home. Given the latter, you have a key role in the prevention of food contamination as well as acquiring producing and / or handled at home. Always remember the following tips. These will help prevent contamination of food.

 CLEAN

• Wash hands frequently using clean water, especially before preparing food.
• Thoroughly wash raw vegetables and using water. 
•  After preparing each food item and before beginning the next, wash cutting boards, dishes, utensils and counter tops counter tops with hot water and much detergent.
• Choose to use paper towels to clean kitchen surfaces. If you use cloth towels, wash them often seek in the hot cycle of your laundry machine

SEPARATE

• Avoid cross-contamination between raw and cooked foods during preparation or storage.

• Separate raw meat, poultry and seafood from other foods in the monkey and shopping in the freezer of his home, and during food preparation.

• If possible, use one cutting board for raw meat only. (Hint use tables with different colors).

• Never place cooked food on a plate that previously held raw meat, poultry and seafood without prior sanitization.

Place the product properly in the refrigerator. Dairy products should be in the top shelves, in the middle meats and fruits and vegetables in the bottom. Take care that there are no meat juice spills and if there they do not contaminate ready-to eat.

COOKING

• A good weapon to destroy harmful bacteria is adequate cooking of food. When we say we mean proper heat applied to both the food and the cooking time used. You should cook the food long enough and high temperatures.

• Use appropriate cooking times and temperatures. Avoid meats that are cut red juice.

• Reheat foods to proper temperature (70C). to destroy the bacteria responsible for food poisoning.

• If you buy your lunch and come prepared for cold, re-heated to 70 C before consumption. If you must arrive frozen make sure that has survived the cold chain.

• Eggs should be cooked until the yolk and white are secure.

• Fish should be opaque and flake easily with a fork.

• When cooking in a microwave oven must ensure that no cold spots in food where bacteria can survive. For best results, cover food, stir together and rotate so that they cook evenly. If there is no turntable in your microwave, rotate the dish by hand once or twice during cooking.

• When reheating sauces, soups and meat sauce, bring to boil.

COOL

• Refrigerate foods as soon as possible. Since cold temperatures prevent bacteria from growing and multiplying.

• Adjust the temperature of your refrigerator so that the below four ° C and the freezer at 0 ° C. Check these temperatures occasionally.

• Never thaw food at room temperature. Click thaw food under running cold water from the tap or in the microwave. Pickled foods should be placed in the refrigerator.

• Do not put too much food in the refrigerator. Cool air must circulate freely to keep in good condition. In order to do frozen foods in small portions.

• Store food properly in the freezer and respect their due date.

• Do not refreeze thawed food. Cook and save later. If they were cooked, have them. Do not refreeze.

• Do not put hot food directly in the refrigerator, cool previously.

• Do not prepare foods too far in advance and stored within the danger zone, rather than cooling.

• Do not cool food prepared outside the refrigerator and before storing. Cool leftover hot meals to 21 C within a maximum period of two hours and from 21 C to 4 C or less within a further period of four hours. (For example, using cold water baths).

• Do not keep open the refrigerator or freezer for longer than you need to save or make the food because it increases the air temperature in the unit.