HEALTH AND SAFETY GUIDELINES
Because of consumer demand, preservativesY The size of each pack should be small enough to
have been removed from many pre-preparedensure that it is used in one go . Small packs
foods. This together with the changes infreeze more quickly and uniformly and give better
shopping habits to a once-a-week shop, meanresults.
that safe handling and storage of food is evenY Frozen food, once thawed, must not be refrozen.
more important than ever. Lean food keeps better and longer than fatty
The following tips should help you to ensure thatfood, salt reduces the storage time.
the food in your home is in as perfect conditionY Wrap the food in polythene or aluminium freezing
as possible.bags or foil so that they adhere to the food and
Y Keep the time between buying chilled food andprovide an airlight seal .
placing it in your fridge as short as possible. TestsY Packaging which is swollen or has traces of
showed that the temperature of 1 litre of orangerefrozen water droplets on the pack could
juice rose to 22!C in an hour between theindicate that the product has not been kept at a
supermarket and home. It then took 11 hours tosuitable temperature and that it may have lost its
get down to 7!C in the refrigerator.
original quality. Partially thawed food must not be
Y Keep the refrigerator door closed as much asrefrozen, it must be consumed within 24 hours.
possible. Never exceed the storage times indicated.
Y Do not push food together too much, try to allowY Never place hot food, bottles or cans of fizzy
air to circulate around each item.drink in the freezer as they may explode.
Containers with a lid must not be filled to the
Y Cool cooked food as quickly as possible but dobrim.
NOT place in the refrigerator until cool. (Leave
food in a cool place in order that it can then beY Do not open the door or place extra fresh food in
put in the refrigerator as soon as possible).the freezer next to food which is already frozen
Y Do NOT mix raw and cooked meat, they must beas this could cause the temperature of the frozen
in separate containers. Take care not to let thefood to rise and its quality and storage life to
meat juices drip onto other food. If the meat doesreduce .
drip, remove everything and clean thoroughly.
Y Do not store food uncovered.
Y The best way to defrost food is to put it in the
refrigerator to thaw slowly.
Y Remove suspect food from your refrigerator and
clean (refer to OMaintenance and Cleaning�).
Y Never allow spillages to dry and harden.
Y Ensure that food placed in the freezer is dated
and labelled and used in date order to ensure
that food is consumed at its best.
Y It is important that food is used before its Obest
before� date.
Y Store eggs in the egg rack provided in the
refrigerator door. Discard any broken or chipped
eggs.
Y Regularly check the refrigerator door seal to
ensure that it is clean and free from debris.
Y Always wash your hands with soapy water and
dry them with a clean towel before handling food.
Y Keep work surfaces clean and avoid cross
contamination by not using the same work
surface or knife, without washing them thoroughly
in between.
Y The fresh foods to be frozen must be fresh and of
the best quality.
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ACEC
TRICITY BENDIX
