ISO 22000 : Personnel Hygiene

Personal Hygiene

Hygiene is a word used to describe sanitary principles for the preservation of health. Personal hygiene refers to the cleanliness of a person’s body. Parts of the body that contribute to the contamination of food include the skin, hands, hair, eyes, mouth, nose, nasopharynx, respiratory tract, and excretory organs. These parts are contamination sources as carriers, through direct or indirect transmission, of detrimental microorganisms.

Good personal hygiene policies and practices are the foundation for successful food safety and quality assurance in all food manufacturing facilities. Plant personnel are among the most significant reservoirs and vectors of microorganisms, chemical residues and foreign materials in the food facility, and as such, can be a source of unwanted contamination to products. Comprehensive personal hygiene programs, coupled with a top-down philosophy supporting sound sanitary practices as part of the corporate structure, are key to implementing best practices for compliance with Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures (SSOPs) and related sanitation and food safety audits. The top-down approach ensures that personal hygiene policies and procedures are implemented by all personnel; management, visitors, production, sanitation and maintenance staff at each company and in each facility, reducing the risk of product contamination and the likelihood that such product will reach the consumer.

A food handler is anyone who works in a food business and who either handles food or surfaces that are likely to be in contact with food such as cutlery, plates and bowls. A food handler may do many different things for a food business. Examples include making, cooking, preparing, serving, packing, displaying and storing food. Food handlers can also be involved in manufacturing, producing, collecting, extracting, processing, transporting, delivering, thawing or preserving food. Food handlers are potential sources of microorganisms that cause illness and food spoilage. Thus management must select clean and healthy employees and ensure that they conduct hygienic practices. Employees must be held responsible for personal hygiene so that the food that they handle remains wholesome.

However, addressing all the potential personal hygiene trouble spots can be challenging, because the routes, or vectors, of contamination are varied and complex. In any given food plant, there is a wide range of activities and movement that can result in the transfer of microorganisms, chemical adulterants or foreign objects from plant personnel to the food product. The transfer of contaminants can occur through a direct route, such as bacteria transferred from the body, skin, mouth, hands or hair to the product, or indirectly via their personal equipment, such as clothing, footwear, utensils and other tools used in their daily tasks. Everyone in the food production environment must understand that anything that travels through or is mobile in the facility is a potential source of contamination and must be tracked and controlled. Certainly, people are the biggest “movers” in the plant and therefore a source of cross contamination when moving from one processing area to another, followed by the tools and equipment they carry and use, which includes everything from sanitation foamer carts and hoses, to forklifts and pallet jacks, to pens and tape.  

Protective Garments

Personal hygiene begins at home, with the essential elements for good hygiene being a clean body, clean hair and clean clothing. Hair in food can be a source of both microbiological and physical contamination. Hairnets and beard covers should be worn to assure food product integrity. Long sleeved smocks should be worn to cover arm hair. Clean uniforms, aprons and other outer garments that are put on after the employee gets to work can help minimize contamination. While working, clothing should be kept reasonably clean and in good repair. Removal of smocks, lab coats or aprons should take place when leaving the work area to go to the employee break room, restroom or exiting the building. Personal items such as meals and snacks should be stored in a locker or break room area that is located away from processing areas or areas where equipment and utensils are washed.

Jewelry

The only jewelry allowed in a food plant is a plain wedding band and/or one small post earring in each ear. No other jewelry is to be worn because it may fall into the product, it can present a safety hazard and it cannot be adequately sanitized against bacterial transmission. It should be removed prior to entering the processing facility. Employees must wear different colored smocks when going from a raw processing part of the establishment to the cooked processing side. They should also step into a sanitizer footbath between the two processing areas to eliminate the bacteria on their shoes.

Diseases & Illness

No employee who is affected with, has been exposed to, or is a carrier of a communicable disease, the flu or a respiratory problem, or any other potential source of microbiological contamination shall work in any area where there is a reasonable possibility that food or food ingredients can be contaminated. The number one symptom of a foodborne illness is diarrhea. Other symptoms include fever, dizziness, vomiting, and sore throat with fever or jaundice. Any employee with these symptoms should not be allowed to work around food.

A company policy should be established requiring that employees report any active case of illness to supervisors before beginning work. If an employee has been diagnosed with a foodborne illness, exclude them from the establishment, and get the attention of company health officer or send to a medical officer for further diagnosis. The public health department or public health officer must be notified if the employee has been diagnosed with one of the following foodborne illnesses: Salmonella typhi, Shigella species, shiga toxin-producing E. coli, or hepatitis A virus.

Cross Contamination

Staphylococcus aureus is caused by food products touched by employee hands or being sneezed upon. Thirty to fifty percent of adults carry this in their nose and twenty to thirty five percent carry this in their skin. All employees must avoid uncontrolled, uncovered coughing or sneezing. The best way to prevent the spread of viruses to food is to ensure that hands are washed and that they are clean and protected when handling food. Anytime a human hand touches something, there is a risk of contamination with harmful microorganisms or chemicals.

Control of Cross Contamination

Employees must wash and sanitize their hands thoroughly in a hand washing facility before starting work, especially if the employee has direct contact with food. The hands should also be washed after each absence from the work area, after visiting the restrooms, after eating, drinking, smoking, chewing gum, chewing tobacco, coughing, using a handkerchief or tissue and any other times when hands have become soiled or contaminated.

Consumption of food

Consumption of food, drink, smoking or tobacco use is permitted only in authorized areas. All of these actions would generate saliva, which could contaminate the food. Additionally, employees should never spit in the building. Lunches should be stored in designated areas and refrigerators emptied weekly. No food should be permitted in employee lockers or at work areas and no objects such as toothpicks, matchsticks or similar objects are allowed in the mouth while on the job.

Hand Washing

The hand-washing facility should have liquid soap, cold and hot water that is 100° F and able to run for at least 20 seconds at that temperature. The employee must scrub the surface of their hands and arms vigorously for 10 to 15 seconds. The friction itself can remove many microorganisms. They should scrub the areas between the fingers and under the nails and then rinse the hands thoroughly. Hands should be dried with paper towels or warm air dryers. Adequate waste containers should be supplied for used towels.

Fingernails

Hands and fingernails must be kept clean. Fingernails should be short and absent of fingernail polish or false fingernails. Cuts or burns on the food worker’s hands should be thoroughly bandaged, and covered with clean gloves. The use of gloves often creates a false sense of security but does not eliminate the need for hand washing and when necessary, sanitizing.

Gloves  

Improperly used gloves may become a vehicle for spreading pathogens. Non disposable gloves should be washed and sanitized before starting work and as needed. Disposable gloves should be changed whenever contamination is a possibility, such as taking out the trash, handling cleaning chemicals, handling any animals, or picking up

dropped items. Under no circumstances should a live or dead rodent be touched. Hands must be washed before putting on this new pair of disposable or non-disposable gloves.

Sanitizers

Hand or glove dips may also be used, but only after hand washing. Sanitizers are designed for this purpose and should be monitored frequently to ensure proper concentration is maintained. These dips are not a substitute for proper hand washing.

Management Responsibility

Management should serve as role models for good work habits and acceptable hygienic practices. They should continually emphasize how important it is. Policies should reassure the employees that they will not lose their jobs if they report an illness or a communicable disease. Once employees understand what is expected of them, effective supervision of employee practices should be used to ensure that employees follow proper procedures. Training should be conducted annually and reviewed whenever incorrect practices are observed.

Important Tips for Good Personal Hygiene Policy

1. Thoroughly wash and dry your hands before handling food, and wash and dry them again frequently during work.
2. Dry your hands with clean towels, disposable paper towels or under an air dryer.
3. Never smoke, chew gum, spit, change a baby’s nappy or eat in a food handling or food storage area.
4. Never cough or sneeze over food or where food is prepared or stored.
5. Wear clean protective clothing, such as an apron.
6. Keep your spare clothes and other personal items away from where food is stored and prepared.
7. If you have long hair, tie it back or cover it.
8. Keep your nails short so they are easy to clean, and don’t wear nail polish as it
   
   can chip into the food.
9. Avoid wearing jewelry, or only wear plain banded rings and sleeper earrings.
10. If you have cuts or wounds, make sure they are completely covered by a waterproof wound strip or a bandage. Use brightly coloured wound strips, so they can be seen easily if they fall off.
11. Wear disposable gloves over the top of the wound strip if you have wounds on your hands.
12. Change disposable gloves regularly.
13. Advise your supervisor if you feel unwell and don’t handle food.