For Safety's Sake • Food Safety Newsletter • April 2007
Information and Tips for Keeping it Fresh!
Volume 1 • Issue 2
Welcome to For Safety's Sake - an informational newsletter dedicated to food safety. We hope you enjoy this issue and share it with others who are concerned about food safety. Sign up to receive this newsletter by email >
Focus on Food Safety
Just last week, the Food and Drug Administration Office of Food Labeling proposed changing its rules on the labeling of foods that are irradiated, allowing some of them to be labeled pasteurized.
The FDA has proposed that companies could label their food as pasteurized only when the radiation treatment does not cause a material change to the product. They have announced a request for public comment on this change. Companies wanting to label their products as pasteurized would need to demonstrate to the FDA that the radiation kills germs as well as pasteurization without material change to the product.
It became clear in my conversations with a wide variety of individuals, including professionals within the foodservice industry, that there are questions about the differences between pasteurization and irradiation. In light of this announcement, I thought this column would provide the perfect forum to appropriately answer these questions, especially as they relate to shell eggs.
Both irradiation and pasteurization are designed to kill harmful bacteria and protect the end user. With many products, irradiation works. However, irradiating shell eggs, does not work. It leaves the shell egg unacceptable for consumption because there are significant changes, especially as it relates to taste and smell. When researchers tested irradiation on shell eggs, the irradiation caused a bad oxidation of the oils or fats in the yolk of the egg. The results were that the egg became rancid. This causes a change in the yolk's color, as well as gives the eggs a rank or offensive taste and smell.
Conversely, the pasteurization of shell eggs destroys bacteria and viruses while keeping the farm fresh taste intact. With our pasteurized shell eggs, we receive as many phone calls raving about the great taste as we receive those complimenting the safety values of our pasteurized shell eggs.
Hopefully, this clarifies the differences. We will continue to follow with great interest this FDA proposal and keep you updated. In the meantime, we encourage you to share your views with us and the FDA Office of Labeling.
Greg West
President of National Pasteurized Eggs, Inc.
Food Safety in the News
New Food Safety Test Developed
A new, fast method to test food for a variety of pathogens that cause common food borne illnesses such as E. coli and salmonella has been developed by Litmus LCC, an Arkansas-based company. It is reported by the company that results take only 15 minutes in comparison to the traditional two to three days. The test, called Rapid-B, bypasses the standard culture-growing processes and can name individual bacteria in approximately 15 minutes.
Source: Associated Press/Houston Chronicle - Posted: April 2, 2007
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/health/4682946.html
FDA Extends Comment Period
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has extended its deadline until May 3 for public comments on its ruling that milk and meat from some cloned animals are safe to eat. If approved, it would allow for the first time, food made from cloned cattle, pigs and goats.
Source: Reuters/San Diego Union-Tribune - Posted: April 2, 2007
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/business/20070402-0826-cloning-fda-comments.html
Pet Owners & Advocates Demand Protection of Pet Food Supply
As a result of the recent pet food scare, pet owners and pet advocates are demanding that the government and the pet food industry take measures to prevent future incidents, such as improved labeling on products, as well as a national database for reporting any problems. The outbreak was linked to wheat gluten found in wet foods for dogs and cats.
Source: Baltimore Sun - Posted: April 7, 2007
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nationworld/bal-te.pets07apr07,1,4229047.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
Food Safety Q & A
We receive many questions from customers and readers regarding a variety of food safety issues. If there is an issue you would like us to address in a future e-newsletter, please contact us at 4safetyssake@gmail.com.
Q: What foods are most often associated with food borne illness?
A:
- raw meat
- pooled raw eggs
- raw poultry
- ground beef
- unpasteurized milk
- raw fruits and vegetables
- raw shellfish
- alfalfa sprouts
- bulk raw milk
- unpasteurized fruit juice
Source: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/foodborneinfections_g.htm#riskiestfoods
Safe Serving Spotlight
Who is leading the pack in food safety? In this section, we highlight foodservice entities that hold the highest standards and can teach all of us a thing or two. If you believe your organization deserves to be recognized, please e-mail us 4safetyssake@gmail.com and let us know. We'd love to share your story, too.
The Inn at Willow Falls, Crest Hill, Illinois
While foodservice operations follow the guidelines set forth by their local health agency, Karl Hill, director of foodservice at the Inn of Willow Falls in Crest Hill, Illinois, is taking food safety for his residents to the next level. Hill serves about 150 residents and guests in three dining rooms four times each day at this senior living community. Although he is responsible for food and beverage operations, which include the hiring, training and scheduling of staff, his number one priority is the safety of his guests.
Hill has always taken great pride in food safety. From a procedure standpoint, he consistently stresses hand washing before putting on gloves and immediately after gloves are removed. Hill also says healthy employees are key to keeping his operation free from food safety hazards. "During the last flu season, I only lost one employee to the cold and flu," Hill said.
Another way Hill eliminates potential food safety nightmares is by using quality products such as high level disinfectants. "I test the sanitization station regularly and spot check the employees' solutions to make sure everyone is using the right ratios and replenishing every two hours," says Hill.
When it comes to food preparation and handling, Hill recently found an ideal solution to a food safety problem which took a resident favorite off the menu for the last six years. About three months ago, Hill began using pasteurized shell eggs. "Our residents are what I like to call old school -- they like to have their eggs runny and poached. With the Will County Health Department, we aren't allowed to do that, until I found out about pasteurized shell eggs."
While Hill purchased the eggs for safety's sake, he got an amazing response from his residents. "They were ecstatic. Poached, fried, whatever, they just go crazy for the eggs," he says. Hill typically offers fried or poached eggs one day a week on the menu, but is considering adding a second day each week due to the huge response. "We usually get about 65 residents down for breakfast. But when we serve the pasteurized shell eggs, we get almost double that."
If you'd like to learn more about The Inn at Willow Falls, please visit their website: http://www.willowfalls.com/.
From the Food Safety Expert
Are you an expert in food safety? If you are, we'd like for you to be part of our expert team. Email 4safetyssake@gmail.com and let us know about you.
The Inspector is "In"
Food safety hasn't changed that much over the past 13 years in my career as a Licensed Environmental Health Practitioner. In fact, returning to a Health Department after being away for seven years, I've discovered that many of the same violations still exist. However, many of the techniques we use as inspectors can and should be used by employees in an attempt to become their own inspectors and prevent these missteps from occurring in the first place.
By following these few simple steps, you can avoid many simple common health code violations:
Lead by example - Wash your hands as soon as you come in to work or after returning from breaks. This sets the tone for your fellow employees and allows you to check for a few critical violations that may exist. Soap, paper towels, hot water are all needed for proper hand washing and can lead to deficiencies on a health report. Remember, if you have to move items out of the way to get to the sink that, too, is a critical violation.
Measure it - This applies to temperatures and chemicals. Two tools most often "missing" are the metal stem thermometer and chemical test strips. It is essential to keep hot foods at 140oF or above and cold foods at 41oF or below at all times. If foods are "out of temperature," it's your job to question why, how long and what do I do now? If you don't know the answer to these basic questions, do as we say, "when in doubt, throw it out." As for chemicals, know what kind of sanitizer is being used, where the test kits are located and how to use them.
Look Around - It's amazing what you can see if you just stand back and watch the practices of employees. Look for those handling raw foods and then handling cooked foods. Watch dirty hands, soiled equipment and raw food as all are potential sources of contamination. Hand washing is imperative between handling dirty and clean equipment/utensils to prevent cross contamination.
Share your knowledge - Demonstration of knowledge is part of some food codes, but not all. Not only is it essential that you have a Certified Food Service Manager, he or she must share his or her knowledge with your staff to make certain everyone knows the basics.
Preventing food borne illness is everyone's responsibility. It is preventable and by following these simple guidelines, you can help keep the public safe when dining at your facility.
To obtain a copy of Laurie Jahn's helpful Food-Safety Checklist, email 4safetyssake@gmail.com. Simply type "Food Safety Checklist" in the notes section.
About Laurie Jahn, LEHP, MPA
Laurie Jahn currently serves as the Continuous Quality Improvement Specialist for the Lake County Health Department in Lake County, Illinois http://www.co.lake.il.us/health/ehs/food.asp. In this position, she is responsible for working with management in addressing on-going issues to develop solutions with training and technology. Jahn is also a licensed Environmental Health Practitioner and holds a master's degree in public administration from University of Michigan. She received her undergraduate degree in Environmental Health from Illinois State University. She was previously employed by TPC/PFG as the Training Manager where she certified all the sales staff in Food Service Manager Certification. Jahn has also worked for the Oakland County Health Department as a Senior Sanitarian and Medline as the Training Manager. She can be contacted via e-mail at ljahn@co.lake.il.us.
Did You Know?
Food borne disease is extremely costly. Health experts estimate that the yearly cost of all food borne diseases in this country is 5 to 6 billion dollars in direct medical expenses and lost productivity.
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease
Source: http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/healthscience/healthtopics/foodborne/default.htm
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