Handbook of Hygiene Control in the Food Industry

John Holah, H.L.M. Lelieveld, Domagoj Gabric, H. L. M. Lelieveld

• Publisher: Woodhead Publishing
• Year: 2016
• Edition: 2
• eBook ISBN:
  9780081001974
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Food Science
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Handbook of Hygiene Control in the Food Industry, Second Edition, continues to be an authoritative reference for anyone who needs hands-on practical information to improve best practices in food safety and quality. The book is written by leaders in the field who understand the complex issues of control surrounding food industry design, operations, and processes, contamination management methods, route analysis processing, allergenic residues, pest management, and more. Professionals and students will find a comprehensive account of risk analysis and management solutions they can use to minimize risks and hazards plus tactics and best practices for creating a safe food supply, farm to fork. - Presents the latest research and development in the field of hygiene, offering a broad range of the microbiological risks associated with food processing - Provides practical hygiene related solutions in food facilities to minimize foodborne pathogens and decrease the occurrence of foodborne disease - Includes the latest information on biofilm formation and detection for prevention and control of pathogens as well as pathogen resistance

Chapter 1

The Starting Point

What Is Food Hygiene?

Y. Motarjemi, Formerly Senior Scientist, World Health Organization, Geneva Switzerland; Independent Consultant, Nyon, Switzerland, Formerly Corporate Food Safety Manager, Nestlé, Vevey Switzerland

Abstract

The concepts of food safety and hygiene have intuitively been a concern to human kind since the dawn of history. In the last 2–3 decades, the world had seen major improvements in food safety management, although admittedly this progress and the lessons learned have been at the cost of many incidents, where people have been injured or have lost their lives.

To highlight the importance of hygiene in food processing and manufacturing establishments and also to measure the progress that has been made so far in ensuring food safety and wholesomeness, this introductory chapter reviews the basic concepts underlying food hygiene, the path that has been taken to reach today’s status, and the challenges that we face in future. It also outlines the role and responsibilities of the various sectors of society, namely governments, food industry, consumers, and academia.

Keywords

Food safety; food hygiene; foodborne disease; diarrhea; health; food suitability; spoilage; risk; risk analysis; food safety management

1.1 Introduction

Traditionally, the term “hygiene” has been associated with cleanliness: cleanliness of the environment, hands or other body parts, clothing, etc. Also, it is often associated with the presence or absence of microbial contamination, in particular fecal organisms. However, as is discussed in this introductory chapter, the term encompasses a much broader concept. This chapter reviews the significance of food hygiene, its development throughout history, perceptions and misconceptions on the subject, and the present situation.

1.2 What Is Food Hygiene?

The term hygiene originates from the Greek “Hygeia,” the goddess of health. Dictionaries define it as the principles (or science) for maintaining health and the practice of these. According to this definition, food hygiene can therefore be interpreted as all the principles and practices relating to food which are essential for maintaining health.

The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), the international body which sets standards for foods, defines food hygiene as “all conditions and measures necessary to ensure the safety and suitability of food at all stages of the food chain.” Thus, the term food hygiene covers two concepts, (1) food safety and (2) food suitability (CAC, 2009).

According to the CAC, food safety is “the assurance that food will not cause harm to the consumer, when it is prepared and eaten according to its intended use,” whereas food suitability is “the assurance that food is acceptable for human consumption according to its intended use.” Implicitly, it refers to aspects of quality such as:

absence of spoilage (be it chemical or microbiological degradation);

absence of foreign bodies (eg, flies, hair);

food authenticity (including proper information on the product and ensuring that it is not adulterated); and

cultural and religious acceptability.

At first glance, the definition given by the CAC may appear to reflect a broader concept than that given in the dictionary as it also includes qualities that seemingly have no direct impact on illness. However, considering “health” in its broad sense, that is, as defined by the World Health Organization (see Box 1.1), one realizes that health is more than the absence of illness and that the two definitions concur. In effect, when a product causes distress for consumers, even in the absence of physical illness, the principles of food hygiene are not respected; such as the case of the horsemeat scandal which swept Europe in 2013. One could see that two of the above criteria of food suitability, that is, authenticity and cultural and religious acceptability, had been violated and this situation created a great deal of outrage among consumers. Note that the outrage of consumers and their perception and ethical preferences also come into the picture in another context as well, that is in the context of “risk analysis” and the decision-making process (see Section 1.5.1).

Box 1.1

Definition of Health According to the World Health Organization

“Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”

Another term often associated with hygiene, and also noted in dictionaries, is the world “cleanliness.” Therefore, the term food hygiene has been commonly associated with the cleanliness of food and its protection from visible dirt. A consequence of this perception has been that in food hygiene, traditionally the emphasis has been on the ability to clean and to ensure that facilities for washing and waste disposal are available. As will be seen below, these measures, although essential, were not always sufficient to protect health and adequately and effectively prevent foodborne illnesses.

Subsequently, in the 1990s, there was a fundamental change in the management of food safety and food suitability; from the traditional sanitary and empirical methods, the approach to food hygiene control shifted to a science-based analysis of risks and control measures. This led to the advancement of the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system as a method of food safety management in food production. This system will be presented in chapters “HACCP” and “Food Safety Management: State of the Art.”

1.3 Historical Developments

Food hygiene has been of concern to humankind since the dawn of history. In earlier times, the major concern and threat to human survival was probably the consumption of poisonous foods. It is presumed that primitive humans used their sensory perceptions, that is, taste and smell, together with memory to evaluate the safety of their food. In other words, consumers would directly taste the food and would, through trial and error, learn which ones were safe and which ones were to be avoided. The cold climate during the ice age provided a natural preservation method and prevented growth of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms. Later, the discovery of fire constituted a major milestone in the history of food, as cooking food, particularly meat, over a fire contributed to its nutritional quality and microbial safety. Today, we know that it may also have introduced some process con...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• List of Contributors
• Foreword
• Preface to the Second Edition
• Preface to the First Edition
• Chapter 1. The Starting Point: What Is Food Hygiene?
• Part I: Management of Hazards and Risks
• Part II: Plant and Equipment
• Part III: Cleaning and Disinfection
• Part IV: Monitoring and Verification
• Index