Food Storage Case Study

2.1.4 Food Storage

There was one chest freezer, one walk in cooler, and one dry storage area for the premises. The freezer measured at -18°C and the walk in cooler measured at 3°C. As mentioned before, potentially hazardous foods must be kept below 4°C to avoid foodborne illnesses, so the temperatures were in compliance with the regulations (FPR, 1999). All foods were kept in their own separate containers and original packaging. It is important that food come from approved sources, so there can be more certainty that foods have been handled and processed properly to avoid foodborne illnesses. Items in the chest freezer included their wing products, the dry storage room included their dry products and boxes, and the walk in cooler contained

Moreover, it is important that foods be stored properly to avoid contamination and spoilage of the foods (CFISIG, 2004; BCCDC, 2010). The storage of foods in these rooms was well organized and properly maintained. All foods had lids on the containers and the dough and pizza racks had covers on them. Furthermore, there were no foods that were stored on the floor and raw products were not stored with ready to eat products. This will ensure that the food will not be contaminated from events such as water leakages or spills and will also help facilitate cleaning the floor under these products. In addition, the sanitary condition of the dry storage room is imperative to prevent the attraction of pests. The dry storage room contains food sources, is relatively warm, and provides shelter. All of these conditions are favourable to pests, which is why the dry storage room must be maintained in a sanitary manner to prevent the attraction of pests. The dry storage room at this facility was well maintained. All foods were on shelves a few feet off the ground, their containers closed, there were no signs of spills on the floor, and there were no

Having potable water is crucial in maintaining the safe and sanitary operation of the food premise. Non-potable water will contaminate everything it comes into contact with, including food, and that can be hazardous to the public (CFISIG, 2004).

2.1.13 Food Contact Surfaces and Equipment

The premises contained bottles made of plastic, stainless steel tables, food grade cardboard boxes, dough roller machine, and metal utensils such as cutters. All of these were in good working order, non-damaged, and made of materials that are non-toxic. Since food may come into contact with these equipments, it is vital that they do not introduce toxic substances into the food. This could be harmful to customers. In addition, having these equipments in good condition facilitate the removal of microorganisms more effectively; damage to equipment such as cracks can make the surface non-smooth and therefore, make it difficult to clean. Furthermore, damaged equipment can introduce physical hazards to food such as metal parts from the dough roller machine and that can injure