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Food Handling

All stages of food handling, whether it is preparation, processing, packaging, storage, transportation or offering for sale, must be carried out in a hygienic way.  This is particularly true in catering premises, where the key points listed below should be followed:

• Clean work surfaces before starting to prepare food, preferably with a food safe sanitiser. 
• Keep raw and cooked foods separate.
• Use separate utensils, such as knives and chopping boards for raw and cooked foods.
• Maintain high standards of personal hygiene.
• Thoroughly defrost food before cooking.
• Ensure that joints of meat are thoroughly cooked.
• Do not reheat food unless it is absolutely necessary.  Any food which is reheated should reach above 75^oC.
• Keep food either piping hot (above 63^oC) or cold (below 5^oC) to reduce the risk of growth of food poisoning bacteria.
• Cover food to prevent contamination.
• Stock raw foods below cooked foods.
• Check refrigerator and freezer temperatures regularly. Ideally the temperature should be recorded.