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CONTENTSHepatitisA 1StaffHygiene 2Gloves 3Hairnets 3GettoKnowFCS 4

April2017-Volume3,Issue4

HEPATITISAHepatitis A is a viral foodborne disease that occurs sporadically and in epidemicsworldwide,butismostcommonindevelopingcountries.Thevirusisprimarilyspreadwhen an uninfected (and unvaccinated) person ingests food or water that iscontaminatedwiththefaecesofaninfectedperson.Thediseaseiscloselyassociatedwithunsafewaterorfood,inadequatesanitationandpoorpersonalhygiene.

Symptoms

The incubationperiod is14-28days followingwhich, symptomswillappear.Thesesymptomscanmildtosevere,andcaninclude,fever,malaise,diarrhoeaandjaundice.

WhoisatRisk?

Anyonewhoisnotvaccinatedisatrisk.

TreatmentandPrevention

Thereisnospecifictreatmentforthisdiseaseandtherecoverytimecantakeweekstomonths.TopreventthespreadofHepatitisA,oneofthebestdefences,aftervaccination,isforallfoodhandlingstafftomaintaingoodpersonalhygieneandpracticeregularhandwashingandsanitising.

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COVERINGTHEBASICS:STAFFHYGIENE

Personalhygieneisanintegralpartofpreparingandservinghealthyfoods.Neatness,cleanliness and maintaining hygiene is expected in every food and hospitalityestablishment.Employersandstaffhavealegalandmoralobligationtoprotecttheirclientsfrombecomingillfollowingtheconsumptionoftheirproducts.

Personalhygienebeginsathome.Employeescancarrypathogensontheirskinandintheirhair,so itisessentialthatthereisahighstandardofpersonalcleanlinessandproper sanitationpractices. It is vital that employerscommunicateproper hygienestandards,suchascleanhair,bodyandclothing,priortoemployment,andemployersmustupholdthesestandardswithperiodictraining.

Pathogenscanalsobecarried internally. Ifastaffmember isaffected,orhasbeenexposedto,acommunicablediseasesuchasflu,respiratoryproblems,diarrhoeaetc.theyshouldnotbeallowedtoworkinanyareawherefoodorfoodingredientscanbecontaminated.Anyemployeethatdisplayssymptomssuchfever,dizziness,vomitingorasorethroughwithjaundiceorfevershouldbeexcludedfromthekitchen.

Nostaffshouldbeallowedtosmoke,eatordrinkwhilehandlingfood.Smoking,eatingor drinking will lead to staff members touching their face and mouths, wherebyharmfulbacteriacanbespreadtotheirhandsandthenontofood.

Oneoftheeasiestandmosteffectivewaysofdemonstratinggoodhygienepracticesare frequent hand washing. Frequent hand washing with proper hand washingtechniqueswillremoveharmfulbacteria,suchasE.coliandSalmonella,andviruses.Handsshouldbewashedasoftenasnecessary,especiallywhenenteringthekitchenandbetweenalltasks.

Oneoftheeasiestandmosteffectivewaysofdemonstratinggoodhygienepracticesarefrequenthandwashing.Frequenthandwashingwithproperhandwashingtechniqueswillremoveharmfulbacteria,suchasE.coliandSalmonella,andviruses.Handsshouldbewashedasoftenasnecessary,especiallywhenenteringthekitchenandbetweenalltasks.

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WEARINGOFGLOVES

Thereseemstobeamisimpressionthatwearinggloveswillmagicallyrenderthewearerfreeandimpervioustocontamination.However,thewearingofglovesbyfoodhandlersishighlydiscouragedforanumberofreasons:

• Weoftenseestaffwearingglovespickuprefusebinlids,foodofftheflooretc.

• Staffoftenbelievethatwearingglovesentitlesthemtonotwashtheirhandfrequently,orevenbeforedonningthegloves.

• Glovesincreasetheperspirationofthewearer,makinghandswarmandclammywhichisanidealbreedinggroundforbacteria.

• Glovesthatcomeintocontactwithcontaminatedsurfaceswillpickupbacteriaaswithhands.

• Staffmaynotbeabletoworkefficientlyastheirsenseoftouchiscompromisedandcouldincreasetheriskofinjury.

• Thefrequentchangingofglovesincreasesoperationalexpense.• Mostantibacterialhandwashsoapsaredesignedtoleaveatraceof

bacteriainhibitingchemicalontheskinevenafterrinsing.

HAIRNETS

Itisgoodpracticeforallstafftokeephairtiedback(iflong)andallhaircoveredinfoodhandlingestablishment.Beardnetsarealsoessentialformalestaff.Ifhairisnotcovered,itismorelikelytofallintofood.BUTdidyouknowthatevenifaheadiscleanshaventhatitisarequirementtowearahairnet?Duetotheheatinmostkitchens,staffwillperspire.Thehairnetscanactasanabsorbent,preventingperspirationfromdrippingintothefoodandpreventthefoodhandlerfromtouchingtheirfacewhilehandlingfood.

HandWashingProcedure

• Wetyourhandswithclean,runningwaterandapplysoap

• Latheryourhandsbyrubbingthemtogetherwiththesoap,besuretolatherbetweenyourfingers,underyournailsandthebackofyourhands

• Scrubyourhandsforatleast20seconds(longenoughtosignhappybirthdaytwice!)

• Rinseyourhandswellundercleanrunningwater

• Dryhandswithpapertowel,(andclosetapwithpapertowel).

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GETTOKNOWFCS

Accreditationandaffiliations

FCSreceivedISO/IEC17025accreditationthroughSANASinAugust2001.

Beinganaccreditedlaboratorymeansthatwenotonly

havetheconfidenceinourpersonnel,ourqualityoftestingandthetestresultsweprovidetoour

clients,butalsothatwearecompetentinourdutiesandthatourclientsandotherlaboratoriescanhaveconfidenceintheserviceswe

render.Ourtestingmethodsare

assessedonthesameprinciplesasotheraccreditedlaboratories

throughouttheworld.

NAME:IraFortuin

POSITIONATFCS:HygieneAuditor

COUNTRYOFBIRTH:SouthAfrica

HIGHESTQUALIFICATION:MastersinBiotechnology

FAVOURITENONWORKACTIVITY:Surfing,gym,travelling,spendingtimewithfamilyandfriends

FAVOURITEMUSIC/MUSICIAN/GROUP/BAND:Planetshakers

THECOUNTRYYOUWOULDLIKETOEXPLORETHEMOST:Florence,ItalyandMacchuPicchu,Peru

NAME:RikusDicks

POSITIONATFCS:ChiefConsultant(CapeTown)

COUNTRYOFBIRTH:SouthAfrica

HIGHESTQUALIFICATION:B.scEnvironmentalandBiologicalScience

FAVOURITENONWORKACTIVITY:Camping

FAVOURITEMUSIC/MUSICIAN/GROUP/BAND:Metal,MichaelJackson,InFlames