7 June is "International Food Safety Day". It raises awareness of the consequences for health when eating contaminated and spoiled food. Various germs can be transmitted when food is improperly prepared, which is just one of the reasons why staff hygiene plays such an important role in food companies.
Foodborne disease transmission - a common problem
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that one in ten people falls ill every year after having consumed food that was contaminated by bacteria, parasites, chemical substances or viruses. According to the Centres for Disease Control and Infection (CDC), 80 percent of diseases are transmitted by the hands. Special attention should therefore be paid to hand hygiene in all areas where food is processed, including:
- In the catering trade
- In grocery stores
- In supermarkets
- In wholesale trade
Staff hygiene - what is important?
First and foremost, staff must be informed about the importance of personal hygiene and receive internal training on this - including instructions on correct hand hygiene behaviour.
To wash to the required standards, hands have to be held under running water, thoroughly soaped and cleaned at all points:
- palms
- back of the hand
- finger gaps
- thumbs
- fingernails
A thorough hand wash takes up to 30 seconds. Signage near food preparation areas and hand wash stations can help increase staff compliance with hand hygiene procedures.
Use of hand sanitisers
Hand washing should be performed frequently, especially when hands are visibly soiled. The use of hand sanitisers is recommended after washing with soap and water, to eliminate any germs that survived the hand washing process, as well as when hands are not visibly soiled. For sanitising gels to be at their most effective, hands should be moistened with the product and rubbed together until they are dry. This should take around 30 seconds. Do not shake excess gel off hands or wipe them on clothing – just keep rubbing!
Tip: Make sure that the hand sanitiser contains at least 60 percent alcohol. This ensures harmful pathogens are eliminated, because coronaviruses and most other germs are sensitive to fat-dissolving substances such as alcohol.
Moisturising ingredients care for the skin
It is also important that the hand sanitisers used are enriched with moisturising ingredients. Products with alcohol contents that are too high can have a defatting effect on the skin, which can lead to skin irritation or eczema on the hands. This may affect the willingness of staff to use hand sanitisers and increases the risk that the hygiene measures are not followed properly. Well-formulated products such as PURELL do not have this impact on the skin.
Stay healthy!
On our own behalf
We are working hard to expand our production capacities, to help companies return to normality. The measures taken will enable GOJO to provide more PURELL® hand disinfectants, soap and surface disinfectants in the near future. Read more>>>
