Services:

Links:

• Oregon Health Division

• Centers for Disease Control

Lane County's  Local Health Department's Environmental Health Services has professional staff who protect the public's health. They do this by inspecting food businesses and by educating and testing workers who handle and prepare food.

BACTERIA: A germ with only one cell. There aremany different kinds; but many can cause illness when they grow and multiply. Soap and hot water will wash away bacteria.

VIRUS: A germ that can live inside of a cell. If given the chance, viruses will multiply enough to cause disease. Soap and hot water will wash away viruses.

FOOD-BORNE ILLNESS:Sickness from eating food that was not safe; food poisoning.

Wash your hands often when working with food and drinks - this gets rid of germs that can make people sick. The best way to wash your hands is to scrub for 15-20 seconds with warm or hot running water and soap - then dry them with clean paper towels or an air dryer. Washing your hands well is one of the most important good health habits. It sounds too easy, but hand washing really works to wash away germs from your hands. Remember to always wash your hands:

• BEFORE you touch anything used to prepare food
• BEFORE you touch food that will not be cooked
• AFTER you handle trash and take out garbage
  AFTER you handle dirty dishes
• AFTER you work with RAW meat, fish and poultry (Poultry: Birds raised for meat. Chicken and turkey are the most common kinds of poultry; duck and goose are also sold for food.)

It's also very necessary to wash your hands: AFTER you go to the bathroom (use the toilet) and wash again when you return to the kitchen. AFTER you eat. AFTER you touch your face, hair, or body. AFTER you blow your nose. AFTER you cough or sneeze, because you must cover your mouth. AFTER you take a break and if you smoke, wash your hands afterwards.

Your kitchen should have a hand washing sink with hot water, soap and paper towels. Do not use your apron, or dish towels to dry your hands.

Germs such as bacteria and viruses, grow easily, so think of your hands and fingernails as always contaminated. Just because they look clean does not mean they are clean. Germs are too tiny to see with your eyes. If you do not wash your hands in the right way and keep your fingernails trimmed short, your hands can put germs in food which gets eaten by your customers. They may then get sick from these germs. This is called food borne illness or food poisoning. Soap and hot water will wash away germs. Plastic gloves can also spread germs. Wash your hands before putting on gloves and change gloves between tasks.

Remember to always wash your hands.

Hepatitis "A": A virus that causes liver disease. It spreads when someone has the virus in the feces. The viruses can get on hands, and then on to food that another person eats. This is one reason to wash your hands well after using the toilet!

Take Care of How You Look
and How You Act

You want to look clean & be clean when you are at work. Your clothes must be clean, and your apron or uniform should be fresh.
As you know, it is not healthy to smoke or use any form of tobacco. If you use tobacco, do not smoke or chew it while your are working or when you are near food or dishwashing areas. Smoke only while you are on a break. After you smoke, wash your hands with care before you return to work.
Keep your hair clean and neat. For your safety wear it close to your head, tied back, or in a net or under a hat.

Work Only When You are Well

If you feel sick you should not go to work. The germs you bring to work can spread when you sneeze and cough, and when you touch food, dishes, counters, utensils, forks, knives and spoons, pots, pans and other people.

• Do not work if you have a cold, flue, fever, runny nose, or sore throat.
• Do not work if you have diarrhea.
• Do not work if you are vomiting.
• Do not work if you have Hepatitis "A". Tell your boss; someone must tell the Health Department right away (call the office or health center nearest to you.)
• Do not work with foods if you have an infected cut, a burn or a sore on your hand. If the sore is not infected, wear a rubber or plastic glove.
• If someone at home is sick, be sure to wash your hands carefully before you start work. Washing your hands at home will also help prevent the spread of illness there.

What Makes People Sick from Food?

People can get sick when the food they eat has germs. Germs cause food borne illness or food poisoning. Germs grow easily in foods like meat, fish, poultry, milk, refried beans, cooked rice, and baked potatoes. These are called potentially hazardous foods. These are all foods that are moist or damp, and they have protein that the germs need to grow. Germs also grow well in other foods kept warm in the Danger Zone. Part of your job is to protect the food and to stop germs from growing, so that no one will get sick.

1. Wash your hands well.
2. Be sure that the food is wholesome and protect it from germs.
3. If you keep food very hot or very cold, out of the "DANGER ZONE", germs will not grow.

Potentially hazardous foods: Possibly unsafe. Some foods can become unsafe if they are left too long at room temperature.

Danger Zone: Temperature of food between 41ºF (7ºC) and 140ºF (60ºC)

• Danger Zone: 45 F to 140 F
• Oregon Law: Allows 45 F - but 41 helps keep food safer

Potentially Hazardous Foods and minimum required temperatures:

• Poultry & Stuffing: 165 F (74 C)
• Hamburger, all Ground Meat, except Poultry: 155 F (68 C)
• Pork, Steak, Fish, Eggs: 145 F (63 C)
• Beef, Lamb and Seafood: 145 F (63 C)
• Rare Beef Roasts: 130 F (54 C)