1. CAUTION—
Germs Hiding
Welcome participants and ask everyone to sign the attendance sheet.
If you would like to use a pre-test or post-test, use the quiz that accompanies this package.
Introduce the inservice:
Today, we’re going to talk about germs that are hiding. What kind of germs are here? What kind of trouble can they cause?
Then we’ll talk about what each of us can do to ensure safe food for everyone we serve.
I hope each of you will learn something interesting, maybe even surprising. When we are finished today, each of you will have great ideas you can put into practice right away. Food safety is critical to the health of everyone who eats our food. So, let’s take charge!
© National Pasteurized Eggs, Inc. v3659 SafeEggs.com/foodservice

2. What you don’t know can hurt you— and the people you care for.
When bacteria or viruses in food cause illness, that’s foodborne illness.
Did you know that when there’s an outbreak, both customers and foodservice workers often get sick?

3. Even when the kitchen LOOKS clean, germs can hide.
Look at the top 5 causes of foodborne illness::
Food from unsafe sources
Poor personal hygiene
Not cooking food enough
Not holding hot or cold enough
Contaminated equipment or work surfaces

4. What is contamination?
anything that can get onto food and make it unsafe
GERMS
like E. coli, Salmonella, Campylobacter, Shigella, Clostridium, Staph germs, Norwalk virus, Hepatitis

5. For safe food, we need more than clean.
We need sanitary work surfaces.
SANITARY
means safe from harmful levels of germs.

6. When germs transfer from one surface to another, that’s called
CROSS CONTAMINATION
Germs pass from hands or gloves to food.
Germs also pass from knives, cutting boards, countertops, equipment, and utensils.
Germs pass from one food to another.
How could germs be passing to the salads in this picture?
[from the cutting boards, the knife, the cook’s gloves]

7. CROSS CONTAMINATION is dangerous because: You can’t see the germs.
They cause illness.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that 1 in 6 Americans gets foodborne illness every year.
Many people are at heightened risk, but all of us are at risk every day. 

8. After you clean, always sanitize to wipe out germs you can’t see.
What can you do?
After you clean, always sanitize to wipe out germs you can’t see.
[review sanitizing products and procedures in your operation]

9. Raw meat can drip germs onto foods below it.
When you
store food:
Separate raw animal foods (meat, poultry, and fish) from produce and ready-to-eat foods.
Keep foods covered and labeled.
Keep storage areas and refrigerators clean and sanitary.
Did you know?
Raw meat can drip germs onto foods below it.

10. When you prepare food: Did you know?
Always start with clean, sanitized work surfaces and equipment.
Start with freshly washed hands and fresh gloves.
Clean and sanitize all equipment and work surfaces between recipes.
Did you know?
Germs stay on equipment and pass to the next food.

11. When you prepare food: Did you know?
Be aware that germs spread when you handle ingredients and mix foods.
Sanitize to wipe out germs you can’t see.
Did you know?
When you crack an ordinary raw egg, Salmonella can spread 16” across the counter. It can live for 24 hours.

12. When you prepare food: Did you know?
Pay special attention to knives, cutting boards, bowls, utensils, and sinks where you wash produce.
[If you have color-coded cutting boards, explain why. Mention your sanitizing procedures that apply to food prep.]
Did you know?
If you chop meat on a cutting board, it leaves germs that contaminate the next food you chop.

13. Did you know this?
“Cutting boards you use for raw meat have 200 times more bacteria than a toilet seat.”
- Charles Gerba, PhD, University of Arizona

14. are cooking or serving food:
When you
are cooking or serving food:
Use separate utensils for raw or cooked foods, like hamburgers on a grill, or fried chicken.
Change gloves when you switch from raw to cooked or ready-to-eat foods.
Sanitize dining tables between seatings.
Did you know?
Using the same tongs for raw and cooked chicken can transfer germs. That makes the cooked chicken unsafe.

15. are transporting food:
When you
are transporting food:
Make sure equipment is clean and sanitized
Keep food covered
Keep it in sight
[Discuss your procedures for safe food transportation.]

16. monitoring buffets or self-service:
When you are
monitoring buffets or self-service:
Use separate utensils for each food
Label foods so customers don’t taste-test
Remove soiled dishes
Watch the activity
Sanitize dining tables between seatings.
Did you know?
Buffets have been linked to several foodborne illness outbreaks.

17. What would you do to make sure there’s no cross contamination on this sandwich?
__________________________
Ideas:
Protect lettuce from cross contamination in storage
Ensure the slicer was sanitized before slicing the turkey
Ensure counter, cutting board, and knives were sanitized before slicing tomatoes
Ensure the foodservice worker began with washed hands and fresh gloves
Ensure the foodservice worker washed hands again and changed gloves after anything that could contaminate them.
Ensure this person is not going back and forth with touching raw, potentially hazardous foods
Possibilities are almost limitless!

18. Key Points Germs we can’t see travel from: One food to another
Equipment or work surfaces to other foods
Our hands or gloves to foods
They can make our customers (and us) sick.

19. Our answer: Did you know? Store food carefully Clean and sanitize
Wash hands
Change gloves
Pay attention to food safety procedures
Did you know?
Guarding against cross contamination is a great way to show love to the people you serve.

20. We wish you and your customers safe and happy eating!
© National Pasteurized Eggs, Inc. v3659 SafeEggs.com/foodservice