A food worker is serving a peanut-free meal to a food allergic customer.
What should the food worker do to prevent cross-contact?
a. Remove peanuts from a pre-made meal and serve it first
b. Use gloves when serving the peanut-free meal and serve it last
c. Serve the peanut-free meal after other meals are placed at their table
d. Wash his hands before serving the peanut-free meal and serve it first
The Correct Answer and Explanation is :
The correct answer is b. Use gloves when serving the peanut-free meal and serve it last.
Explanation:
Preventing cross-contact is essential in managing food allergies, particularly when it comes to allergens like peanuts. Cross-contact occurs when an allergen comes into contact with a food that is allergen-free, potentially causing a harmful reaction for a person with a food allergy. Here’s why option b is the best choice:
- Using Gloves: When serving a peanut-free meal, the food worker should wear gloves to reduce the risk of transferring peanut residue from their hands to the meal. This is a direct way to prevent the allergen from coming in contact with the food. Gloves create a barrier between the worker’s hands and the food, ensuring that peanut particles do not transfer.
- Serving Last: Serving the peanut-free meal last is an important step in minimizing the chance of cross-contact. This ensures that any peanut-containing items or utensils that may have been used previously (either by other staff members or in the meal preparation process) do not come in contact with the allergen-free meal. By serving the peanut-free meal last, the worker avoids contaminating it with peanut particles that could be present in the environment or on surfaces used to prepare and serve other meals.
Why Other Options Are Incorrect:
- Option a (Remove peanuts from a pre-made meal and serve it first): Removing peanuts from a pre-made meal does not guarantee that the food is free from all traces of peanuts. Simply removing visible peanuts doesn’t account for potential peanut residue. Additionally, serving it first may expose it to more contamination risk.
- Option c (Serve the peanut-free meal after other meals are placed at their table): This option is risky because placing meals on the same table can lead to cross-contact from airborne peanut particles or from surfaces contaminated with peanuts.
- Option d (Wash hands before serving the peanut-free meal and serve it first): While washing hands is important, serving the meal first increases the risk of cross-contact, as the worker could unintentionally contaminate the food with peanut residue from other meals or utensils. It is safer to serve the peanut-free meal last.
By following best practices for avoiding cross-contact, such as using gloves and serving allergen-free meals last, food workers can greatly reduce the risk of allergic reactions and ensure the safety of customers with food allergies.