Chapter I – Hygiene 6.Transport and storage of food Prof.Aleman Viorica

Food transport It is performed only with refrigerated or thermally isolated trucks which have to meet certain requirements. Responsibilities: The supplier is responsible for : -the quality of the delivered food; -proper packaging; -providing the means of transport; -loading and downloading the freight without deteriorating the packaging. The purchaser is responsible for: -taking delivery of the goods; -certifying the quantity and quality of the freight.

The transport of The transport of perishabile food Depending on the type of food, specialized means of transport are used. Example: Refrigerated trucks equipped with hooks for carcass meat, Transport tanks for milk, etc. The transported food products have to be packaged, and the bulk food should be transported in clean returnable containers or packaging, which should meet certain general requirements.

The time allotted for transport should be as short as possible. During transport, the food products should not modify their quality. Maximum promptitude is the essential condition to prevent contamination or food alteration. The maintenance of means of transport is performed :  in specialized units;  performing the following operations: washing, rinsing, disinfecting, rinsing, drying (after each transport);  loading – downloading is performed:

 with clean reach trucks and piling-up equipment, etc.;  with professionally-sanitary certified staff;  staff access inside the means of transport is permitted only with complete and perfectly clean protection equipment. The means of food transport shall not be used for transporting other types of freight. It is forbidden for any person wearing street shoes and without protection equipment to go inside the means of transporting perishable food.

The transport of heavy perishabile food and packaging The same requirements as for the transport of perishable food should be observed, except for providing a low temperature (in refrigerated or thermally isolated trucks). Tips The transport of heavy perishable food The means of transport for food should have the transport space designed in such a way as to allow for efficient washing and disinfection. Following each transport, the means of transport are sanitized only in specialized units. Perishable food is transported only with refrigerated trucks (or in thermally isolated trucks, as applicable).

Food storage General requirements The general requirements concerning the storehouses for food refer to:  the space for storage;  the utilities;  cleanliness;  preventing insect and rodent infestation;  The actual storage modality.

The storage space It should be: Clean, to prevent food alteration or contamination. It is forbidden to store food in spaces with : -residual water infiltration (from deteriorated plumbing) or rain water infiltration (from the broken roof); -deteriorated walls and floors; Large enough, to allow for storing the food in acceptable air and access conditions.

Utilities The main utilities are: -lighting -ventilation -microclimate -water supply and connection to the sewage system Lighting can be natural and/or artificial. Lighting is necessary because it allows for tracing the condition of stored food (expiry date, deterioration of the canned food, changes in colour, etc.) and for performing a proper cleaning. Ventilation can be natural (airing) and mechanical (by supplying or exhausting the air). Its type, rhythm and intensity depend on the kind of food.

Microclimate is represented by temperature, humidity and the speed of air currents and it is very important for keeping food in safe conditions. These parameters differ according to the type of stored food. Example: for heavy perishable food, the temperature can be room temperature ( C) and humidity should be low; For perishable food, the temperature should be low (maximum +4 0 C) and relative humidity %; for fresh vegetables and fruit, the optimum temperature is C and humidity %.

Water supply and connection to the sewage system - They are necessary in order to perform the cleaning. Cleaning – is mandatory for proper storage of food. Preventing rodent and insect infestation – Insects and especially rodents can contaminate or eat and depreciate large quantities of stored food.

Storage rules Food storage should follow certain principles : -stock rotation:  moving products with an earlier sell-by date to the front of a shelf, to be delivered first; -the shelves and lockers should:  be resistant, not to give off toxic substances or to soil the products or packaging with paint;  have a space between them for staff access, product handling and cleaning;

 be placed at a distance of minimum 0.5 m from the walls because rodents tend to move close to the walls around the room and, if they do not find anything to eat, they usually leave the room;  be equipped with cylindrical metal supports, which do not allow the rodents to climb them; -food is stored separately, according to its kind.

Storage of perishable food Perishable food is food that depreciates immediately if it is not kept in conditions that do not allow for bacteria multiplication. Examples of perishable food:  meat and meat products,  milk,  cheeses,  eggs,  cooked dishes,  creams,  ice-creams, etc. Perishable food is stored at low temperatures after it is refrigerated or frozen.

General conditions for refrigerating and freezing spaces The refrigerating and freezing spaces should be placed: -in clean rooms, -with proper ventilation, -with lighting (without direct exposure to sunlight), -to be easily accessible, -to allow for proper cleaning of rooms, refrigerators and freezers.

The materials used for building these spaces should:  be easily cleaned and disinfected;  not have pored surfaces which might keep dirt;  not rust  not give off odors that could get in the food. Proper functioning should:  provide inside temperatures of:  C for refrigerators;  C for display refrigerators;  C for freezers;  not produce:  noise;  overheating of rooms.

Temperature measurement is performed by means of control and display equipment or a thermometer, by writing down the values on a “temperature diagram” (thermogram), at least twice a day. It is mandatory that:  the doors should be closed hermetically;  surveillance should be performed by specialized staff regularly, following an agreed time schedule. Access to equipment of unauthorized workers for checking or repairs should not be allowed.

Rules for placing the food  Raw food (meat, milk, eggs, etc.) should be stored separately from prepared food;  Food with a strong smell should not be stored in the same refrigerator with food that can take over the smell easily (milk, butter);  In case we have only one refrigerator:  Raw meat is placed on the lowest shelf;  Smelly food is stored in tightly closed containers;  All food products should be protected by:  Plastic foil,  Containers, etc.

Storage of dry food The so-called “dry food“ is heavy perishable food (pasta, rice, semolina, sugar, etc.). Dry food is stored: -in packaging that should be: clean one of the types: -closed containers, with airing facility: -sacks of textile material; -waterproof packaging (plastic or carton bags, boxes);

- on shelves, racks, pallet-boxes, in no case on the floor! - in rooms that are: dry, clean, aired, having enough light for cleaning, controlling food quality and performing periodical disinfection; o At a temperature between +7 0 C and C and reduced humidity; o With access spaces for food control and sorting; -protected against insects and rodents.

Storage of canned food and bottled drinks Is the same as for “dry“ food. It is forbidden to deliver cans that are:  damaged,  rusty,  leaking,  bulging or beyond expiry date. Never open a swelling or bulging can; (the inside gases, being under pressure, can hurt the people in the room, and the pouring liquid soils and contaminates the environment ).

Storage of fresh fruit and vegetables  Before storage, vegetables and fruit are dried and dehydrated.  We should know that by reducing the quantity of water from the product we prevent the activity of bacteria and molds (water below 30-15%).  Dried products contain water below 30%, and dehydrated products, below 8%.  These products are stored at C, in rooms with humidity below 70%.

Storage is done:  In rooms:  cool,  dark,  with high humidity (relative humidity 85-95%) of the type “cellar microclimate“,  on racks,  on grates,  in crates.  fresh fruit and vegetables are sorted permanently, removing the depreciated ones;  potatoes and root vegetables should be stored separately from the other fruit and vegetables, because the earth that remains on them can contaminate the ones that are consumed raw.

Storage of packaging  It is mandatory to provide a space for the storage of packaging (room, shed, etc.).  Packaging such as crates, cartons, pallets, capsules, etc., deteriorate and get dirty if stored outside without any cover (dust, microbes, residue from rats and mice, etc.).  Cleaning under these conditions is very difficult and inefficient, expensive and sanitary insecure.

Packaging for perishable food (paper, plastic foil, plastic containers, cartons, etc.) must be stored in clean spaces, free of dust and rodent access. This type of packaging comes into direct contact with food, and, if it is chemically or bacteriologically contaminated, it will certainly contaminate and alter the food.

Useful tips The storage spaces must be salubrious, large enough, provided with proper microclimate, lighting and ventilation, clean and free of insect or rodent infestation. Food products must be delivered from the storage rooms following the rule of stock rotation, first the products that have been stored earlier. Use resistant shelves and cabinets, which do not give off odors and do not soil the packaging with paint, having enough space between them for access, and placed at 0.5 m from the walls, provided with cylindrical supports to prevent rodent access. Do not place the refrigerating equipment in rooms with high temperature, exposed to sunlight.

The materials used inside the refrigerating rooms should be easy to clean, not get rusty and without pores. The refrigerating equipment should not produce noise and overheat the room. The doors should close hermetically. Check the refrigerating equipment periodically, only by specialized staff. Clean the refrigerators and freezers by following these steps: stop their functioning, remove the food from inside and place it in another refrigerator/freezer, defrost slowly, wash, rinse, disinfect, rinse, dry, start their functioning, put back the food after the equipment has reached the optimum inside temperature.

 Periodically measure the temperature inside the refrigerator.  Do not block the spaces for the circulation of cooling air inside the refrigerator, by storing food.  In case you have only one refrigerator, place the tightly packaged meat on the bottom shelf and all the other types of food on the upper shelves, in closed containers and packaging.  Do not store in the refrigerator eggs with traces of poultry excreta (which contain Salmonella).  Do not introduce warm food in the refrigerator. It produces water condensing, which can deteriorate the other products.  The food from open cans is first discharged into another container and afterwards placed inside the refrigerator.

Raw food should not be placed together with semi-prepared or prepared food. Meat, fish, dairy products are placed each in a different refrigerator. Smelly food is stored separately. The temperature inside the freezer should be at least C. Introduce in the freezer only food that is already frozen. If its temperature is between C şi C and you have freezers that lower the temperature up to C, introduce the frozen food inside them, and, when the temperature inside the food reaches C, remove it into the other freezers. Refuse to take delivery of frozen food having temperatures below C.

Totally defrost the meat, before starting its heat treatment. Defrosting is performed gradually, in a protected environment, separately on food categories, and totally. Never freeze again food that has been defrosted ! Store inside the refrigerating spaces only food that is within its validity date; for frozen food, observe the preservation period established by the producer. Freezing does not conceal food alteration. Food supplies should not exceed the storage spaces. Do not use cans that are bulging, rusty, leaking, and beyond expiry date.

Do not open a bulging can : you might get hurt or make the room dirty. Store the potatoes, carrots,etc. (root vegetables) separately from the other fruit and vegetables: the earth that remains on them can contain dangerous microbes (for example Clostridium perfringens). The crates, boxes and other packaging are stored in a separate store room, clean and protected against rodents. Paper, plastic foil, boxes, etc. for food packaging and transport should be perfectly clean, to avoid food contamination.