For businesses in the food industry, food poisoning is a serious business. During this year's Australian Food Safety Week, TQCSI is urging consumers to take food poisoning seriously and maintain good hygiene habits.
As part of Australian Food Safety Week, TQCSI today urged local consumers to take food poisoning seriously.
This year for Australian Food Safety Week 2020 we will be building upon the good consumer behaviour established during the COVID-19 pandemic so we can continue to reduce the amount of foodborne disease.
Five Food Safety Tips
We'd like people to continue the good work by following these 5 simple food safety tips:
- CLEAN – wash hands with soap and running water before handling food and between handling raw foods and ready to eat foods, wash up regularly, especially items which have been used for raw meat and poultry, and keep the kitchen surfaces & fridge clean.
- CHILL – keep the fridge at 5°C or below, refrigerate any leftovers as soon as they've stopped steaming and use within 2-3 days (or within one day for people at higher risk of foodborne illness including pregnant women, the elderly, and those with compromised immune systems) or freeze them immediately.
- COOK – use a thermometer and cook poultry, sausages, minced or stuffed meat dishes to 75°C in the centre; be aware of the risk of raw or minimally cooked egg dishes or look for the new pasteurised eggs. Follow any cooking instructions on the food packaging. Remember, microwave ovens can cook unevenly. Make sure you follow the recommended stirring and standing times before serving.
- SEPARATE – prevent cross contamination, especially between raw meat, seafood, fish or poultry and ready to eat foods like cooked meats, desserts and salads.
- DON'T COOK FOR OTHERS IF YOU HAVE GASTRO or feel unwell – you could make them sick too – so ask someone else to cook or get a takeaway.
See more information about food safety advice for the general public at the Food Safety Information Council's website.
Looking to get Help with Food Safety Certification?
TQCS International (TQCSI) is a fully accredited, third-party certification body providing auditing and certification of international management system standards, particularly for:
- Food Safety (FSSC 22000, ISO 22000, and HACCP)
- Quality (ISO 9001)
- Environmental (ISO 14001)
- Safety (ISO 45001)
- Asset Management (ISO 55001) and
- Information Security (ISO/IEC 27001).
If you are looking for assistance with food safety certification, call TQCSI today to discuss your requirements.