Saint Louis

City of San Fernando 2500 La

11

Hospitality Management and Tourism

HAND-OUT

Food Safety Hazards

Food Safety Hazards are biological, chemical or physical agents in or conditions of
food which could potentially cause an adverse human health effect.
BIOLOGICAL HAZARD

Biological Hazard can be acquired from disease causing microorganisms and poisonous
toxins they may produce. It is caused by bacteria, viruses, parasites, fungi and prions.

A. Bacteria
 Single celled microorganisms that provide the most common threat to
food safety.

Classifications of Bacteria

a. Harmless Bacteria or non-pathogenic - neither harmful or helpful

b. Beneficial Bacteria - helpful microorganisms
c. Undesirable Bacteria –microorganisms responsible for food
spoilage
d. Pathogens or germs – disease-causing bacteria which cause most
food-borne illnesses
Types of Bacteria
ng. Food-
Spore-Forming
borne Bacteria
Can produce a spore
structure that allows the
cell to withstand
environmental stress,
such as cooking, freezing,
salting, drying, and
pickling.
Non-spore forming
Food-borne Bacteria

Not capable of producing

spore structure; they are
always in a vegetative
state.

(THC 2) Risk Management as applied to Safety, Security and Sanitation

Bacterial Growth refers to the reproduction or increase in the number of bacterial cells.

Binary Fission pertains to the condition when bacterial cells divide to form two new
cells.

30
minutes

Phases of Bacterial Growth

a. Lag Phase – growth is slow

b. Log Phase – microbes start multiplying exponentially
c. Stationary Phase – number of bacteria stabilizes
d. Death Phase – microorganisms begin to die

(THC 2) Risk Management as applied to Safety, Security and Sanitation

 Bacterial Growth Requirement

1. Food. Most bacteria prefer high protein or carbohydrate foods

(PHF) like meat, poultry, seafoods, cooked potatoes and dairy
products.

Potentially 2. Acid. Very acidic food like limes and lemons normally do not
Hazardous support bacterial growth.
Foods

p
(PHF) (power of Hydrogen, potential hydrogenii)
symbol used to designate the food’s degree of acidity.
cooked meat
foods containing 3. Temperature. One of the most important factors that affects the
meat
dairy products
prepared fruits
H
growth of bacteria in food. Most the disease-causing bacteria grow
within the temperature range 5˚C to 60˚C.
and vegetables
cooked rice and Classification of Microorganisms according to Temperature
pasta Requirements
 cooked and
processed foods a. Psychrophiles are cold temperature loving microorganisms
containing eggs (0˚C to 21˚C)
b. Mesophiles are middle range bacteria (21.1˚C to 43˚C)
c. Thermophiles are heat loving microorganisms (above
43.1˚C)

4. Time. Bacteria need about four hours to reproduce enough cells

to cause food-borne illnesses.

2hr/4hr Rule. “Foods must not be served to guests upon exposure to

environment that encourages bacterial growth.”

5. Oxygen. Bacteria require different amounts of oxygen to grow

a. Aerobic requires a lot of oxygen.

b. Anaerobic do not need oxygen, they grow well in vacuum-
packed canned food items.
c. Micro-aerophilic grows within the narrow oxygen range.
d. Facultative anaerobes can grow with or without oxygen.

6. Moisture. Important factor affecting bacterial growth. The

amount of available water that support bacterial growth is
designated with the symbol aW (0.0-1.0), disease-causing bacteria
grow in foods with an aW greater than .85. Examples: meat,
poultry, steamed rice, egg, etc.

B. Viruses. They do not reproduce in food; they can survive and cause illness
to anyone who consumes the food. Require a living host to grow and
reproduce.

(THC 2) Risk Management as applied to Safety, Security and Sanitation

 C. Parasites are microscopic creatures that need to live on or inside a host to
survive. They lives in or on a host and obtain nourishment without
benefitting or killing the host (e.g. amoeba)

D. Fungus is a eukaryotic organism that is a member of the kingdom fungi.

Fungi are heterotrophic organisms that possess a chitinous cell wall

Types of Fungi

1. Molds are microscopic fungi that live on plant or animal matter,

its growth is encouraged by warm, humid conditions.

How to minimize mold growth

 Clean the inside of the refrigerator every
few months with baking soda
 Keep dishcloths, towels, sponges and
mops clean and fresh
 Keep the humidity level in the house
below 40%

2. Yeast is a single celled fungus, they have larger size and shape of
cell compared to bacteria which may be oval elongated, elliptical
or spherical. It is used to leaven bread, brew beer and make wine.

Scientific Name: Saccharomyces Cerevisiae

3. Mushroom is a fruit of fungus that grow in soil wood or decaying

matter

a. Edible mushrooms are commonly thought to have little

nutritional value; many species are high in fiber and provide
vitamins such as thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, biotin
cobalamins and ascorbic acid.

b. Poisonous Mushrooms produce secondary metabolites

that render them to toxic, mind-altering or even
bioluminescent.

Mycetism pertains to mushroom poisoning.

E. Prions are protienaceous infectious particles. They are small glycosylated

protein molecules found in brain cell membranes. Prion disease creates
spongiform pathological changes in the brain resulting to brain damage.

CHEMICAL HAZARD

(THC 2) Risk Management as applied to Safety, Security and Sanitation

Chemical Hazard includes chemical compounds that, when sufficient amount is
consumed, can inhibit absorption and/or destroy nutrients. The toxicity can cause severe
illnesses and possibly death because of their toxicological effect on the human body.

Kinds of Chemical Poisoning

A. Ciguatoxin is fish poisoning intoxication from the consumption of tropical

fish. The origin of the toxin is from minute sea creatures called algae. The
toxin cannot be destroyed by cooking
Common Food: Marine finfish are the most common causes of
ciguatoxin poisoning (Barracuda)
Transmission of Food: The toxin is transferred to finfish after their
ingestion of toxin-containing algae
Prevention: Purchase seafood from a reputable supplier
B. Scombrotoxin is histamine poisoning caused by eating foods high in
chemical compound called histamine. Histamine will start to develop as the
tuna died.
Common Food: tuna, mackerel and mahi-mahi
Transmission of Food: Temperature abuse leads to more histamine
production
Prevention: Purchase seafood from a reputable supplier, store
seafood below 41˚F and do not accept seafood that has been
previously thawed
C. Shellfish Toxin is a paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP)
i. Diarrheic shellfish poisoning (DSP)
ii. Amnestic shellfish poisoning (ASP)
iii. Neurotoxic shellfish poisoning (NSP)
iv. Azaspiracid shellfish poisoning (AASP)

Common Food: PSP - mussels, clams and scallops

DSP – mussels, oysters and scallops
ASP - mussels
NSP - gulf coast marine animals
Transmission of Food: Shellfish toxins are inherent in marine shellfish
Prevention: Purchase seafood from a reputable supplier
D. Mycotoxin refers to the production of food-borne molds

PHYSICAL HAZARD
Physical Hazards are commonly unintentionally introduced to food products (eg. Metal
fragments in mincemeat) or refers to naturally occurring objects(bones in fish)that pose
threats to the consumer.
Main types of physical hazards in food

 Food  Glass  Wood

(Eggshells, fruit and  Metal  Cloth
vegetable peels,  Plastic  Insects and
inedible seeds and fish  Stone rodents
scales)  Personal effects

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Choking occurs when food or small object are get caught in the throat or block the
airway

THERMAL HAZARD
Thermal hazard refers to the situation when hot foods are served to clients posing a risk
of injury to people if not properly handled.

(THC 2) Risk Management as applied to Safety, Security and Sanitation