For Safety's Sake • Food Safety Newsletter • May 2007
Information and Tips for Keeping it Fresh!
Volume 1 • Issue 3
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Focus on Food Safety
In April, I was privileged to attend the California Environmental Health Association's (CEHA) 56th Annual Educational Symposium. This event was extremely informative and featured a variety of educational sessions on the many new developments in environmental health.
Indeed, the safety of our food supply has become a significant priority. Given that emphasis, individuals in the environmental health profession and restaurant industry are stepping up and taking leadership roles to ensure that our food is absolutely safe. Trainers, educators, inspectors and other professionals in the health industry deserve tremendous congratulations for making sure they maintain the expert knowledge and continued education to keep up with the many new risks and dangers our food industry is challenged with everyday.
The level of detail the CEHA educational forums provided was outstanding. One session I attended was titled "The Scourge of Salmonella", an area which I am well versed. However I learned new information with every slide in the presentation. The room was standing room only, which showed the commitment and desire to learn by the attendees. Additionally, the material was revealing, detailed and delivered memorable real life examples of Salmonella's risk, as well as recommended solutions. The key learning gained in any one of the approximately 50 educational sessions may well be the component that helps the food industry avert a major food borne illness or outbreak in the future. These continual education events are paramount in this ever-changing world of risk and food safety.
As I spoke with many of the attendees, they also seemed pleased by the improved controls and protocols in the new California Food Code or "Cal Code". The Cal Code becomes effective July 1, 2007, and is an updated combination of the best facts and science available today to protect the food supply and consumer health & safety in California. With the new Cal Code launching in July, this CEHA symposium gave many in the environmental health professional field a timely forum to best absorb, ask questions, educate, train, and share insights on the many new opportunities for improved food safety.
It was our pleasure to be part of this education event and we applaud the CEHA and those behind the Cal Code for their leadership roles in food safety. We hope to support and attend this event again next year and look forward to joining other states in similar events.
Greg West
President of National Pasteurized Eggs, Inc.
Food Safety in the News
Improving Food Safety Procedures
The United States is working on new procedures to ensure food safety in the wake of numerous pet poisonings blamed on food products made in China.
Dr. David Acheson of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said he was considering asking Congress for more funding and expanded legal authority to prevent another incidence of contaminated foods entering the U.S.
Source: United Press International - May 5, 2007
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Top_News/2007/05/05/us_takes_steps_to_boost_food_safety/
Lawmakers Upset with FDA for Food Safety Failings
U.S congressional leaders threatened to "zero out" the salaries of some Food and Drug Administration officials because of recent food safety failings. In the Sentate, the chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee called for a comprehensive audit of the U.S. food safety system "to determine how to remedy breakdowns in the system."
Senate Agriculture Committee chairman Tom Harkin asked the inspectors general of USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services to jointly examine the food safety system. He suggested eight topics for the review, ranging from food production practices overseas to how often U.S. plants are inspected and whether USDA and FDA have sufficient power to respond to food adulteration.
Source: Reuters - April 25, 2007
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNEWS/idUSN2543857220070425
Food Technologies that Raise Consumer Concern
Recent outbreaks of food borne illness have shown that simple plants like lettuce and spinach can harbor deadly germs. And the use of antibiotics and hormones in animal products also raises weird-science fears. REDBOOK investigated six food technologies that have recently made headlines or raised consumer anxiety over the years. They include antibiotics in meat, genetically engineered corn, viruses in cold cuts, hormones in milk, carbon monoxide in meat and irradiated foods.
Source: REDBOOK - May 2007
http://www.redbookmag.com/home/fear-our-food
Food Safety Q & A
If you have a question you would like us to address in a future e-newsletter, please contact us at 4safetyssake@gmail.com.
Q: I know food borne disease is caused by dangerous microorganisms and/or toxic chemicals, but how do these microorganisms grow?
A: Most microorganisms "grow" by multiplication. To multiply, microorganisms need food, time, water and warmth.
Meat, seafood, cooked rice, cooked pasta, milk, cheese and eggs are foods that provide ideal conditions for microorganisms to grow.
One bacterium can become 2 in just 15 minutes. This means that within 6 hours, 1 bacterium can multiply to more than 16 million. To be harmful, some bacteria need to grow to high levels. Other bacteria can cause illness when they are present in very low numbers.
Source: World Health Organization
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.
Lakeland Regional Medical Center, Lakeland, Florida
John Biswanger of the Lakeland Regional Medical Center takes food safety seriously, and with good reason (good health IS his business). As director of nutrition and food services for the hospital, Biswanger is in charge of serving more than 2,700 people each day in the hospital's café and more than 1,300 in-patient meals on a daily basis. When serving that many individuals, especially those hospitalized, it's critical that only the highest food safety standards are followed.
Hospitals are a daunting environment. It has been reported that 2 million people each year become ill as a result of hospital-acquired infections. Proper hand hygiene is critical to the prevention of these infections which contribute to the death of nearly 90,000 hospital patients per year and around $4.5 billion in medical expense, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These statistics can be significantly reduced if proper hand hygiene is implemented at all times. Indeed, Biswanger and his culinary team are serious about hand washing.
"Something as simple as hand washing can make all the difference in the world," he says." And, we are scrupulous about hand washing with our staff." To illustrate this point, Biswanger suggests that his associates sing two verses of a song which is approximately 20 seconds. According to Biswanger, one mid-summer day, he caught an associate singing two verses of Jingle Bells, and it made him smile on a humid Florida afternoon, but he knew his message about hand washing had been delivered loud and clear. He has also put waterless antiseptic hand wash at the entrance of the café for his customers to use.
Another way in which Biswanger keeps his "guests" safe is by serving pasteurized eggs. While more than 125,000 cases of egg-related salmonella are reported on an annual basis, use of pasteurized eggs eliminates the risk of salmonella or other food-borne illness. Although more expensive than non-pasteurized eggs, according to Biswanger, you can't put a price on safety. "If even one person gets ill or believes they are ill due to improperly cooked eggs, that is one person too many," he says.
More concrete is the fact that his team has implemented the Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Points (HACCP) systems and certification for its food service managers. Additionally, 90 percent of his staff are ServSafe-Certified, which means they have taken extra training in food processes and food-handling.
If you'd like to learn more about Lakeland Regional Medical Center, a not-for-profit facility which has served Lakeland, Fla., and the surrounding communities, for more than 80 years, visit its website: www.lrmc.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.
5 Healthy Foods that Can Hurt Children
These days, eating healthy foods is a top priority for most families at home and in restaurants. But there are some hidden dangers in some of the healthiest foods. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 76 million Americans will suffer from food borne illness and at least 5,000 will die this year. Children, the elderly and the immunocompromised are at the greatest risk. Symptoms of food borne illnesses include diarrhea, abdominal cramping, fever, blood or even pus in the stool, headache, vomiting and severe exhaustion. Be aware that sometimes symptoms may appear as early as a half an hour after eating; other times it could take several days or weeks.
Here are some simple tips for safer eating:
- Raw Produce: Wash ALL produce (just before eating, cutting or cooking) thoroughly under clear, clean, running water (which has an abrasive effect). Wash and scrub produce that has a rind, too, such as cantaloupe and pineapple. Why? Pathogens on the outside of the rind can contaminate the inside when you cut it.
- Raw Sprouts: Alfalfa sprouts, clover sprouts and radish sprouts have all been associated with Salmonella and E. coli. Cook sprouts thoroughly to kill off the bacteria.
- Unpasteurized milk, cheeses, eggs, juices and cider: Pasteurization kills harmful levels of bacteria.
- Raw or undercooked shellfish: Shellfish, such as clams, and oysters must be cooked thoroughly. Any animal protein consumed raw or undercooked has an increased potential for causing illness.
- Green or Sprouted potatoes: Throw them out! They contain a toxin called solanine, which can cause gastrointestinal problems.
About Debra Holtzman:
Debra Holtzman is an internationally recognized child safety and health expert, as well as an award-winning parenting author and attorney. Holtzman has been featured on NBC's Today Show, MSNBC and Discovery Health Channel. Her best-selling book, The Safe Baby: A Do-it-Yourself Guide to Home Safety (Sentient Publications) offers parents cost effective, easy-to-implement solutions to keep children and pets safe and healthy.
Did You Know?
More than 200 known diseases are transmitted through food.
Source: Food-Related Illness and Death in the United States Emerging Infectious Diseases, Vol 5, No. 5, 1999.
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