Food Safety and Hygiene

Keeping food safe to eat

Food that is prepared without care can make people ill, so food safety is one of the most important skills in any kitchen. Most food poisoning is caused by harmful bacteria that we cannot see, smell or taste. These bacteria grow best in warm, moist food, and they spread easily from raw food to food that is ready to eat. The good news is that a few clear habits keep them under control. This module covers what those bacteria need, the four Cs of food safety, how to control temperature, how to read date labels, and how to keep yourself and your kitchen clean.

Food safety words

Learn these terms before the rules are described. They name the hazards and the habits that control them.

Match each C to what it means

Use-by against best-before

The two dates on food packaging mean very different things, and mixing them up can be dangerous or wasteful.

Where does raw meat go?

You are putting shopping into the fridge. Where should raw meat be stored?

• On the bottom shelf, so it cannot drip onto other food
• On the top shelf, above everything else
• In the door, the warmest part
• Anywhere, it does not matter

The four Cs of food safety

Food safety comes down to four habits that all begin with the letter C. Cleaning means washing your hands, the surfaces and the equipment. Cooking means cooking food thoroughly, especially poultry, until it is steaming hot all the way through. Chilling means keeping cold food cold, in a fridge below about five degrees Celsius, and not leaving it out in the warm danger zone. And avoiding cross-contamination means keeping raw food, and anything that has touched it, away from food that is ready to eat. Clean, cook, chill and separate: hold to those four and most food poisoning is prevented.

Pick the safe practices

Select every practice that helps keep food safe.

• Washing your hands before handling food
• Using separate boards for raw and cooked food
• Keeping the fridge cold
• Using the same knife for raw meat and salad without washing it
• Leaving cooked food out in a warm room all day

Order handling raw chicken safely

Put the steps for safely preparing raw chicken in the correct order.

• Wash your hands before you start
• Use a separate board kept only for raw meat
• Keep the raw chicken away from ready-to-eat food
• Wash your hands, the board and the knife afterwards
• Cook the chicken thoroughly until it is steaming hot

Complete the food-safety facts

Bacteria multiply fastest in the _____ zone. Keeping food cold to slow them down is called _____. Spreading bacteria from raw food to ready-to-eat food is called _____. A _____ date tells you when a food is no longer safe to eat.

One raw chicken, handled safely

Follow a cook making a chicken dinner. Before touching anything they wash their hands well. They take the raw chicken and use a board kept only for raw meat, well away from the salad they have already prepared. They never let the chicken, the board or the knife touch the ready-to-eat food. Once the chicken is in the oven they wash the board, the knife and their hands before going near anything else. They cook the chicken until it is steaming hot all the way through, not pink in the middle. Every step blocks one path bacteria could take, and together they keep everyone at the table safe.

Tap the ways to stop cross-contamination

Tap the TWO actions that help stop cross-contamination.

• Use separate boards for raw and cooked food
• Wash your hands after touching raw meat
• Use the same knife for everything without washing it
• Store raw meat right next to the salad

The food-safety run

Answer each one correctly to keep your lives. Choose the safe answer.

Handle each kitchen moment

Read each situation and choose the safest action.

• You have just cut up raw chicken and now need to slice some salad. What should you do first?
• A yoghurt is one day past its use-by date. What is the safest choice?
• You are putting the shopping away. Where should the raw fish go?

Build a food-safety rule

Choose the word for each gap to complete one clear food-safety rule.

Explain how to keep food safe

A friend thinks that if food looks and smells fine it must be safe to eat. Using what you have learned, explain how to keep food safe and prevent food poisoning.

• Explain what causes most food poisoning
• Explain the four Cs of food safety
• Explain how to prevent cross-contamination
• Explain the difference between a use-by and a best-before date