0.2 Food safety: introduction to product contamination control  (Page 4/4)

Premises contamination

The design of the premises is very important when determining risks of product contamination. You must consider the layout and design of your facilities and premises:

• secure entry points
• secure parameters
• equipment used
• glass or foreign body contamination.

The design of the premises preferably should be considered during the building of the facility, with consideration given to the availability of services: that is, electricity, gas, and water supply.

The design, layout and maintenance of the premises should be reviewed carefully on a routine schedule in order to prevent product contamination. Where necessary or appropriate, changes should be made.

Design of facilities and equipment

Content (as it should appear on screen):

A satisfactory design of facilities and equipment is essential in avoiding hazards of product contamination. The food preparation areas and storage areas must be large enough to hold all essential equipment, enable the effective separation of raw and high-risk foods, and permit satisfactory workflows for food, food handlers, and waste.

The following factory design principles should be followed:

• cross-contamination eliminated by separating raw and high-risk food areas and color-coding work stations
• linear workflow and progress in a uniform direction from raw material to finished product
• laundry situated in a separate room to reduce risk of contamination
• suitable and sufficient facilities for personal hygiene, cleaning and disinfecting equipment with hot and cold water essential
• equipment and utensils washing areas segregated from food production areas
• adequate refrigeration
• adequate cooking and cooling facilities
• pests denied access and harborage
• suitable staff facilities, including appropriate toilet facilities
• adequate drainage
• suitable and sufficient ventilation
• high standard of lighting
• design which prevents accumulations of dirt in inaccessible places.

Foreign body prevention from the factory fabrication

The construction of the premises is important to prevent the occurrence of foreign body contamination.

• Ceilings should be smooth, clean, fire-resistant, non-flaking, light-colored, covered at wall joints, and easy to clean.
• Walls should be clean, smooth, impervious, non-flaking, durable, light-colored, and capable of being thoroughly cleaned or disinfected. Surfaces may need to be resistant to spillages, chemicals, grease, heat, and impact.
• Floor surfaces should be clean, durable, non-absorbent, anti-slip, free from crevices, and capable of being effectively cleaned. They may need to be resistant to acids, grease, and salts; and, where necessary, should slope sufficiently for liquids to drain to trapped gullies.
• Any glass windows, if present, must be protected from breakage.
• Windows must be fitted with cleansable fly-screens.
• External doors should be screened, and all doors should be self-closing.
• Wooden finishes should not normally be used; but, if in place, these should be well-maintained and appropriately sealed to prevent product contamination.
• Suitable receptacles should be provided for the disposal of waste and debris.

Glass/brittle plastics contamination

Glass and brittle plastics pose a specific health risk to consumers. It is highly unlikely that glass can be completely removed from a factory’s premises, but procedures should be in place to control and manage the risk of product contamination.

As a food safety manager, you should develop a glass/brittle plastics policy that specifies requirements for shielding fluorescent tubes and light bulbs in processing areas, for protection or removal of glass gauges, emergency lights, thermometers, and wall clocks. Where glass windows are present, these must be shielded to prevent breakage.

Pest contamination

Pests within food production factories are regarded as a serious hazard and risk to health; they not only can contaminate food with foreign bodies such as feces and hair, but they also can carry possible fatal diseases.

Control systems need to be in place to reduce the risk of pest contamination by understanding what pests are attracted to and what their habits are, along with monitoring and introducing control measures.

Reduce attraction of pests

It is important that pests are not attracted to the factory or allowed ingression into the factory.

Waste Control

Waste should be removed regularly from production areas and stored in covered containers. All waste must be correctly stored in covered containers that are located in one specific area.

Exterior Maintenance

There must be effective maintenance of the external perimeters of the factory to eliminate any possible harborage or attraction of pests. For example, where grass or any other vegetation is present at the perimeters of the factor, it needs to be cut and controlled so as not to encourage harborage of possible pests.

Factory Fabrication

Any open access to your factory, such as doors and windows, must be controlled. All doors must have self-closing devices, and windows must be screened.

Monitoring pests

A monitoring and control program should be in place for keeping up-to-date records of pest control.

Regular inspections must be carried out to ensure that the factory is free from pest infestation.

The signs of infestations include

• live/dead bodies of insects, rodents, or other animals
• droppings
• holes/runs
• footprints/tail marks
• chewed paper or food
• gnawing damage
• bait takes
• scratching sounds
• grease marks on walls
• odor
• larvae/pupae
• eggs/egg cases
• webbing

In the event of evidence of pest infestation, you should take immediate action to eliminate the pests. You will also need to monitor the situation to take preventive actions to prevent any recurrence.