Basic food hygiene?

Interesting, I never knew that!

This is it. I’m always losing it and finding it again, though.

Really interesting Maybee!

Yes, butterandjam
A new pair every action it seems to me!

I passed my level 2 food handling course recently, on-line through virtual college.
I'm a volunteer in a community café so must have this certificate.
I can confirm that gloves are not recommended but frequent handwashing in a separate washbasin is.

There are, and should be, unannounced inspections by Environmental Health officers.

There are not enough Environmental Health officers to react to all reports that require investigation immediately let alone enough to dedicate to unannounced inspections should the need arise.
I’m not sure there ever has been enough of them.
There are more food establishments everywhere now than ever in cities and towns but fewer resources to monitor whether they are complying with food hygiene laws.
The other day I handed two food encrusted dirty forks from the clean cutlery container back to staff at a well respected bakery shops’ cafe’.

I suppose technically it was “clean dirt” as it had been through the dishwasher!🤮 I am so glad I wear my specs all the time.

Ofcourse Granmarderby
Now with the dubious advantage of knowing the regulations I see these being broken frequently.
My own kitchen would fail an inspection at the first hurdle but it's things like not proper labelling of ingredients/allergens which could be lethal rather than the odd hair in the soup which bother me.

I suppose technically it was “clean dirt” as it had been through the dishwasher!🤮 I am so glad I wear my specs all the time.

Always with roast dinners or similar I check the handles of my cutlery after the dishwasher. Inevitably bits of cabbage or leek stick to them. Perhaps I should put them in handles upright??

I detest MuckDonalds, KFC, etc. and won't have anything to do with any of them, but when I worked in cafes and restaurants, I always wore gloves when handling food as well as frequently washing my hands!

I agree that wearing gloves doesn't that they haven't inadvertantly touched something.

I'd rather they used suitable implements for each type of food rather than hands.

But there's still no guarantee of no cross-contamination without diligence.

I believe soap and water to be the most under rated materials on the planet...

I was in a queue waiting for an ice cream, the server wore gloves, she served a customer his ice cream, popped a flake on with her gloved hand, she then took a bank note from him and handed him the change, all with gloves on.

I didn’t have an ice cream.

^ I always wore gloves when handling food as well as frequently washing my hands^

That's the spirit! That's more like it.

What happens when[not just asking you] things are dropped on floor?
Hands to pick it up I suppose?
Then hand washing?

And what about going to the toilet?

I did the same as I guess most people did, when the thing about bar nuts came out.
Not sure I have touched them since,.

Are they even a thing now.

I’d rather hands washed properly than gloves that often aren’t washed at all.

They should have a Food Hygiene Rating from the local Council. If it’s under 3 definitely don’t eat there. Best is 5. If you feel somewhere is not operating hygienically report it to the LA.

We were away and needed to eat, the only place we could find that could rustle up something gluten free was a local Subway. The staff were all wearing gloves - and the server was meticulous in changing gloves to avoid any cross contamination and it all looked immaculate.

A peck o' dirt afore ye die was a saying of my childhood and ofcourse hygiene is important, especially in a restaurant kitchen, but being too fussy when bringing up children can lead to neuroses later on.

I'm currently living with a psychotherapist who tells me these things

They don't have to wear gloves, and in many cases it's less clean if they do because they never wash their hands and rarely changed gloves in between everything. I'd rather no gloves and strict handwashing.

It feels somehow ‘safe’ to see catering folk wearing gloves, but I’m not convinced they are ‘better’. Thirty years ago, my friend, then a head at a primary school told me that some research (I can’t recall the evidence) had stated that school kitchens should not wear rubber gloves when washing utensils as they were unhygienic. Maybe the new disposable ones are more hygienic but I’d prefer clean scrubbed hands. Only issue is, does everybody wash their hands like we should? I fear not.

escaped

But chefs are artisans, those who flip burgers are not.
Chefs need bare hands to touch food to check the texture and to arrange delicate foods on the plate. They rarely use gloves when using sharp knives. If hygiene is good, why would they need to wear gloves?
I guess handling raw burgers then touching the lettuce or relish could be seen as an issue in the likes of McDonald's. I've never been overly worried in service stations, airports, train stations though, and more importantly never been ill.

The staff all have a food handling and food hygiene certificates.

Those dealing with the raw food are not normally those dealing with cooked.

Don't go to Mac Donalds,easy peasy.

It is not just the gloves issue - I hate to see loose hair - men or women - and beards with no beard net! I imagine the hairs that could end up in the food!! Megan Markle take note!!!

From McDonald's Customer Services .
....

McDonald's restaurant food handlers wash their hands with an antimicrobial soap at least every 30 minutes. Staff who serve or work in the dining area wash their hands at least every hour. We also have teams of employees serving customers and handling money that are separate from those preparing food. A system of colour-coded gloves is used to avoid bare hand contact with raw foods and to handle some ready-to-eat food items.

It's our policy that hats should be worn by all food handlers. Hair must be kept under the hat and away from the face, and styled or tied back so that it is close to the head. Hairnets may be required for hairstyles that do not fit completely under the hat.

I prefer hands, I wash mine before touching each different food, however I don’t dry them each time. The people wearing gloves don’t wash between touching one sort of food to another.
English people would die in the queue while watching my French chicken stall holder and his assistants, gloved or not. Raw chicken is being handled and then, without a pause by the single cold tap, to scoop out a slice of pâté from a bowl before taking the money and the serving the next customer. The only food poisoning I hear about are from the industrial package food.

escaped

From McDonald's Customer Services .
....

McDonald's restaurant food handlers wash their hands with an antimicrobial soap at least every 30 minutes. Staff who serve or work in the dining area wash their hands at least every hour. We also have teams of employees serving customers and handling money that are separate from those preparing food. A system of colour-coded gloves is used to avoid bare hand contact with raw foods and to handle some ready-to-eat food items.

^It's our policy that hats should be worn by all food handlers. Hair must be kept under the hat and away from the face, and styled or tied back so that it is close to the head. Hairnets may be required for hairstyles that do not fit completely under the hat.^

A bit more reassuring.

A poster upthread [sorry, cant find the post right now] mentioned food hygiene certifcates.
I shall be on the look out for them, from now on.

But surely, if anywhere is below a 3 or whatever she wrote, then they couldnt operate anyway?