P6: Explain Safe Practices Necessary in Preparing, Cooking and Serving Food in a Health or Social Care Setting. M3: Discuss the Effects of Unsafe Practices When Preparing, Cooking and Serving Food in a Health or Social Care Setting.

P6: Explain safe practices necessary in preparing, cooking and serving food in a health or social care setting.

M3: Discuss the effects of unsafe practices when preparing, cooking and serving food in a health or social care setting.

When you are preparing, cooking and serving food, you must make sure that you follow simple yet effective rules that mean you’re keeping the food products you are handling in a safe condition to prepare, cook or serve. These rules will include things such as temperature, hygiene of your environment and yourself, and pest control.

There are three type of contamination that could take place in which a person would need to avoid in order for their food to be seen as acceptable for serving.

Physical contamination is when something that isn’t meant to be in the food, is. The contamination could occur at any stage of food production. It could be contaminated during production from raw materials; it could be contaminated during preparation or during storage and service. Common items found include stones, wood, bones, pests, plastic, screws, wire and glass and finger nails.

Chemical contamination is when a chemical product can be found in food. Food can be contaminated through the misuse or mistaken handling of chemicals, including pesticides, bleach and other cleaning materials. All chemicals, such as detergent, disinfectant, sanitizer, used in the food preparation area should be removed before food preparation begins, to prevent any chemical contamination of the food.

Biological contamination occurs when foods containing naturally occurring substances that are poisonous to humans are ingested. These organisms can affect human health, including infection, intoxication and even death. Intoxication occurs when bacteria produce toxins that affect the body. A major bacterial biological risk would be salmonella. The most common type of biological contamination is human hair but other types include animal hair, bits of insects, rodent or...