Safe handling and washing of salads, vegetables and fruit

WHAT ARE THE DANGERS?

• Salad foods may become contaminated with harmful bacteria during production and irrigation.  In addition food handlers may introduce contamination during sorting and packing.
• Vegetable and salad crops may also contain traces of pesticides, or other such chemicals that have been used during production, even when they have been used in accordance with manufacturers’ instructions.
• Salads have been implicated in outbreaks of food poisoning, e.g. due to from Salmonella, Campylobacter and food borne viruses.
• Vegetables such as carrots, peppers, mushrooms, beansprouts etc., which are eaten raw as part of a salad, pose a similar risk.

WHAT CONTROLS SHOULD I HAVE IN PLACE TO ENSURE FOOD SAFETY?

• Thoroughly wash salads under running cold water before use.
• Salads soaked in cold water with salt to remove insects etc. should be thoroughly washed afterwards.
• Store salad vegetables in the refrigerator.
• It is recommended that sandwich makers who put a shelf life of longer than 1 day on their products use a suitable food grade steriliser when washing salad vegetables.
• If raw vegetables are being used either peel first or thoroughly wash before service.
• Do not cut up or prepare salad items on work surfaces or with the same knives or equipment that have been used to prepare raw meat or poultry.  Thoroughly clean and disinfect, or sanitise all surfaces and equipment first.  Better still, use separate colour coded equipment for each task.
• Ensure all staff regularly wash their hands and ensure they are aware of the risks.