How to manage E coli in food businesses.

This article has been written by Pilla Founder, Liam Jones, click to email Liam directly, he reads every email.

E. coli stands for Escherichia coli. E coli is an extremely dangerous organism and eating food with e coli present can cause food poisoning, leading to long term life changing illness or even death. E coli is of such concern that local authority officers will inspect e coli control measures very specifically and if suitable and sufficient control measures are found to be lacking, they are very likely to serve an emergency hygiene prohibition notice which may lead to closure of a business.E coli is commonly found in the intestines of farm animals and can potentially contaminate all types of meat due to the processes found in slaughterhouses and butchers. All meats should be considered with particular emphasis on burgers and ground beef, sausages and minced meats. Food handlers should also be aware that e coli is also potentially found in soil, so it is possible for vegetables and salad to have e coli contamination on their surfaces too.

Preparation of raw meat and e coli

When preparing food is this type it is best practice is that raw food should be prepared in a separate room to ready to eat foods wherever possible. If this is not possible because of space constraints, then a permanent raw preparation area should be found. These rooms or permanent areas should be clearly designated with signage. These areas should have their own cloths, sanitisers and hand wash basins if possible to contain the risk of contaminated food elsewhere. Staff working in these areas should also wear aprons, disposable or washable, to protect their work clothing whenever possible. It may be advisable that disposable gloves are also worn to lower the bacterial load of bacteria on the hands of the staff.In very small kitchens it may not be possible or practical to have a permanent area for preparing food of this type so as a final resort you can allocate an area or surface for the preparation of raw food. Consider the linear flow of the kitchen when doing this to avoid contaminated food. This area must be subject to robust cleaning and disinfection procedures if the area is also to be used for the preparation of ready to eat foods. The safest method of reducing risks is by using time separation i.e. Prepare the raw foods first, clean direct and indirect surfaces down thoroughly, disinfect, remove all utensils and equipment to dishwasher for clean and thermal disinfection, then finally prepare ready to eat foods afterwards.

Sinks and e coli

Sinks can be a major source of cross contamination as raw vegetables and salad are frequently washed in them, these may contain dirt and soil which may harbour e coli organisms as well as other pathogens. Ideally veg preparation sinks should be used for that purpose only and should have signage indicating this, however many food preparation sinks may have multiple uses where raw foods and ready to eat foods come into close proximity e.g. pre-rinsing washed salad and fruit / rinsing cooked rice / cooling cooked pasta under cold water etc.If there is a risk of cross contamination, then appropriate utensils should be utilised such as a bowl or colander.Ensure that the cleaning and disinfection of sinks takes place frequently to avoid risk of cross contamination, ensure that taps and splashbacks are cleaned/disinfected at the same time.

Equipment cleaning and e coli

Equipment and utensils that come into contact with raw foods must undergo robust disinfection using heat e.g. Steam or a dishwasher that can rinse with water at a minimum temperature of 82°c for 15 seconds (thermal disinfection). It is not acceptable to rely on the use of a sanitiser or disinfectant for washing these items, this includes chopping boards and knives.If it is not possible to do this, you should use colour coded equipment and use it for raw or ready to eat foods only.

Complex equipment and e coli

If meat slicers, mincers, vacuum packers or other complex equipment is used, they should be sanitised/disinfected before and after every use and they must only be used for cooked foods. If raw or undercooked products will come into contact with the equipment, then separate equipment should be used. Raw and ready to eat products must never be prepared in the same complex equipment.

Corrective actions if things go wrong

• •If ready to eat foods become contaminated with soil, blood or other contamination from both direct and indirect contact with raw foods, they must be discarded.
• •If the dishwasher breaks down, you must resort to using separate equipment for raw and ready to eat foods until it has been repaired and is in full working order.
• •If food handlers do not follow the safety points and safe methodology, they must be retrained, and extra supervision given if not showing full competency.