Legal Requirements and General Hygiene

Legal Requirements and General Hygiene

Legal Requirements:

The law says it is:

• Illegal to knowingly contaminate food.
• Illegal to sell food known to be contaminated.
• Individual workers can be prosecuted.
• a legal requirement to provide adequate hand wash facilities, including a designated hand wash basin, hot water, soap and suitable drying facilities.

It is important therefore to ensure you do not cause contamination of the food you are dealing with. A high standard of personal hygiene will help you.

General Hygiene

• Ideally you should have a shower, or bath, daily.
• You should not wear excessive make-up or strong smelling aftershave or perfume as they could contaminate or taint the food.
• No jewellery should be worn as it can cause physical contamination and also harbours bacteria. You may be allowed a plain wedding ring. If you do wear one make sure you keep it clean and clean your finger underneath the ring.
• No chewing gum, eating sweets as it can cause physical contamination and also means you are putting your fingers to your mouth and cause your fingers to pick up bacteria.
• No watches, as glass is dangerous if it breaks and watch straps harbour bacteria.