Food Standards Agency
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Coronation Street's comic duo Les Battersby and Kirk Sunderland are in trouble again, only this time the viewers can't help but feel sorry for them.
Unfortunately for the street's loud and daft characters, the meat dracula pies and cloudy beer that they wangled for free in Monday's episode have now left them with possible food poisoning.
Les and Kirk have been suffering from stomach cramps, nausea, diarrhoea and headaches and are sure that Fred's dracula pies, which were made from Halloween's leftover Transylvanian stew, are to blame.
Fred, however, in a bid to prove that his pies are safe to eat, offers to feed them to his baby grandson, Joshua.
We all know that Les and Kirk had it coming to them, afterall food and drink is all they tend to think about. But behind the comedy storyline is a serious matter.
Consumer surveys show that people think that they have experienced food poisoning outside of the home.
The Food Standards Agency is issuing a timely reminder to anyone catering for large groups of friends, family or customers on how to prevent food poisoning.
As you can't see, taste or smell bacteria, the only way that you can be sure that food is safe, is to follow good hygiene at all times.
Food poisoning can be a miserable and potentially dangerous experience that can ruin any party or get-together and unlike Fred, if you have concerns that the food you have prepared is not safe to eat, you should throw it away.
There are four simple points to remember for good food hygiene practise and you should think about them whenever you are handling food:
Back to topYou can prevent the spread of harmful bacteria by observing good personal hygiene and keeping work surfaces and utensils clean.
And remember:
Proper cooking kills food poisoning bacteria such as listeria, salmonella, E.coli 0157 and campylobacter.
It's important to cook food thoroughly, especially meat. Make sure that food is cooked right through and piping hot in the middle.
When reheating food make sure that it's piping hot all the way through and don't reheat it more than once.
Back to topIt's very important to keep certain foods at the right temperature to prevent bacteria growing or toxins forming.
Always look at the label on the packaging. If it says that the food needs to be refrigerated, make sure you keep it in the fridge.
If food that needs to be chilled is left standing at room temperature, food poisoning bacteria can grow and multiply to dangerous levels. Cooked leftovers should be cooled quickly and then put in the fridge. Putting food in shallow containers and dividing it into smaller amounts will speed up the cooling process.
Back to topCross-contamination is the transfer of bacteria from foods (usually raw) to other foods.
The bacteria can be transferred directly when one food touches (or drips onto) another, or indirectly, for example from hands, equipment, work surfaces, or knives and other utensils.
Cross-contamination is one of the major causes of food poisoning:
To prevent cross-contamination:
The Food Standards Agency also recommends that if anybody suspects they have food poisoning they should contact or visit their doctor.
If you believe that you have fallen ill from eating out of the home at a catering establishment then please report it to the environmental health department of your local authority.
Back to topThe Food Standards Agency's Food Hygiene Campaign aims to raise awareness of food hygiene issues among catering businesses and the public, to help reduce food poisoning.
The campaign was launched in February 2002 and is part of the agency's strategy to drive up catering standards within the catering industry and reduce the incidence of foodborne disease by 20%.
If you work in the catering industry and would like more information, then please visit the Agency's campaign microsite from the link below.
Caterers can also get a free award-winning innovative training video. 'Bacteria Bites Business,' and a free one stop shop 'Starting Up' pack for new businesses by contacting the Agency on 0845 606 0667.
If you would like to arrange an interview with an Agency spokesperson, please contact Sarah Read on 020 7276 8888.
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Room 245 Aviation House,
125 Kingsway,
London WC2B 6NH
Telephone: 020 7276 8888
Out of hours duty pager: 07623 978344
Fax: 020 7276 8833
Email:
press.mailbox@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk
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