THE SAFE FOOD HANDLER
PRINCIPLES OF FOOD SAFETY, HYGIENE & SANITATION
How Foodhandlers Can Contaminate Food
Gastrointestinal Illness
● illness relating to the stomach or
intestine
Carriers
● People who carry pathogens and infect
others, yet never become ill themselves
Infected Lesion
● Wound contaminated with a pathogen
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How Foodhandlers Can Contaminate Food
Foodhandlers can contaminate food when
they:
● Have a foodborne illness
● Have wounds that contain a pathogen
● Have contact with a person who is ill
● Touch anything that may contaminate
their hands and don’t wash them
● Have symptoms such as diarrhea,
vomiting, or jaundice—a yellowing of the
eyes or skin
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How Foodhandlers Contaminate Food
Actions That Can
Contaminate Food
A. Scratching the scalp
B. Running fingers
through hair
C. Wiping or touching the
nose
D. Rubbing an ear
E. Touching a pimple or
infected wound
F. Wearing a dirty uniform
G. Coughing or sneezing
into the hand
H. Spitting in the operation
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A Good Personal Hygiene Program
Personal Hygiene
● Habits that include keeping the hands, hair and
body clean, and wearing clean and appropriate
uniforms. Avoiding unnecessary actions and
reporting illness and injury are also features of
good personal hygiene.
Good personal hygiene includes:
● Maintaining personal cleanliness
● Wearing proper work attire
● Following hygienic hand practices
● Avoiding unsanitary habits and actions
● Maintaining good health
● Reporting illnesses
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Handwashing
How to Wash Hands
1 Wet hands and arms with 2 Apply soap. Use enough to build 3 Vigorously scrub hands and
running water as hot as you can up a good lather. arms for ten to fifteen seconds.
comfortably stand. (at least
Clean under fingernails and
100°F/38°C)
between fingers.
4 Rinse hands and arms 55 Dry hands and arms with a
thoroughly under running single-use paper towel or
water. warm-air hand dryer. Consider
using a paper towel to turn off
the faucet.
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Handwashing
Foodhandlers must wash their hands
after:
● Using the restroom
● Handling raw meat, poultry, and
seafood (before and after)
● Touching the hair, face, or body
● Sneezing, coughing, or using
a tissue
● Eating, drinking, smoking, or
chewing gum or tobacco
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Handwashing
Foodhandlers must wash their hands after: continued
● Handling chemicals that might
affect food safety
● Taking out garbage
● Clearing tables or busing dirty dishes
● Touching clothing or aprons
● Handling money
● Touching anything else that may
contaminate hands
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Hand Antiseptics
Hand Antiseptics
● Liquid or gel used to lower the number of microorganisms on the
skin’s surface.
● Must comply with FDA standards
● Should be used only after handwashing
● Must never be used in place of handwashing
● Should be allowed to dry before touching food or equipment
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Hand Care
Requirements for Foodhandlers
Keep Do not wear
fingernails false
short and clean nails
Bandage wounds Do not wear
and cover nail polish
bandages
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Single-Use Gloves
Single-use gloves used for
handling food:
● Must never be used in place
of handwashing
● Must never be washed and
reused
● Must fit properly
Finger Cot
● Protective covering used to
cover a properly bandaged cut
or wound in the finger
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Single-Use Gloves
When to Change Gloves
● As soon as they become soiled or
torn
● Before beginning a different task
● At least every 4 hours during
continual use and more often if
necessary
● After handling raw meat, seafood, or
poultry and before handling ready-
to-eat food
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Bare-Hand Contact with Ready-to-Eat Food
Some jurisdictions allow it but
require:
● Policies on employee health
● Training in handwashing and
personal hygiene practices
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Work Attire
Foodhandlers should:
● Wear a clean hat or other
hair restraint - device used to
keep food handlers’ hair from
food and to keep them from
touching it
● Wear clean clothing daily
● Remove aprons when leaving
food-preparation areas
● Remove jewelry from hands and
arms before prepping food or
when working around prep areas
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Policies for Eating, Drinking, and Smoking
Foodhandlers must not:
● Eat, drink, smoke, or chew gum or
tobacco
When:
● Prepping or serving food
● Working in prep areas
● Working in areas used to clean
utensils and equipment
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Handling Foodhandler Illnesses
IF: THEN:
● The foodhandler has a ● Restrict the employee from working
sore throat with a fever with or around food
● Exclude the employee from the
operation if you primarily serve a
high-risk population
● Restriction - prohibiting foodhandlers from working with or
around food, food equipment and utensils.
● Exclusion - prohibiting foodhandlers from in the establishment
due to specific medical conditions
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Handling Foodhandler Illnesses
IF: THEN:
● The foodhandler has at ● Exclude the foodhandler from the
least one of these operation
symptoms:
• Vomiting Before returning to work, foodhandlers
• Diarrhea
who vomited or had diarrhea must
meet one of these requirements:
• Have had no symptoms for at
least 24 hours
• Have a written release from a
medical practitioner
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Handling Foodhandler Illnesses
IF: THEN:
● The foodhandler has ● Exclude the foodhandler from the
Jaundice operation
Foodhandlers with jaundice must
have a written release from a medical
practitioner before they can go back to
work
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Handling Foodhandler Illnesses
IF: THEN:
● The foodhandler has ● Exclude the foodhandler from the
been diagnosed with a operation and notify the local
foodborne illness regulatory authority
caused by:
● Work with the foodhandler’s medical
• Salmonella Typhi practitioner and/or the local
• Shigella spp. regulatory authority to decide when
the person can go back to work
• Shiga toxin-producing
E. coli
• Hepatitis A
• Norovirus
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