Carts of Cash Chapter 13 – Food Safety

Chapter 13
Food Safety

The exact rules governing safe food handling practices vary slightly based on location, but they all share certain commonly accepted principles.  Your local health department will have the final say, but the topics covered in this section will give you a good foundation on which to base your hot dog cart food handling procedures.

As the owner/operator, or as the health department likes to call it, the “Person In Charge”, you will be required to pass an exam administered by your local health department.  Once you pass this exam, you will be qualified as a “Certified Food Handler”.  Even if your county doesn’t require it, it’s a good idea to take this exam so that you can follow good practices to ensure the health of your customers, and therefore, your business.

There are two ways for humans to become sick as a result of eating at a restaurant or mobile food service cart.

The first way is to ingest bacteria originating from the food servers hands.  This results from poor hygiene practices on the part of the food handler.  The first element of good personal hygiene is proper frequent hand washing.  Use soap and warm running water.  Scrub hand thoroughly, working up a good lather for 20 seconds, which is about the length of time required to sing “Happy Birthday”.  Dry your hands with a single use paper towel.

Hand sanitizer lotions are not acceptable substitutes for proper hand washing.  Wash your hands after any action which may introduce bacteria such as using the bathroom, sneezing or coughing, smoking or eating, or handling raw food or garbage.  Keep your fingernails short, don’t work when you are sick with runny nose, cough, diarrhea or vomiting.

The second source of illness is to ingesting bacteria or toxic chemicals that are present in the food itself.  In rare cases, these contaminants can be present in the food before it leaves the packaging plant.  More commonly, the bacteria is the result of cross contamination, or improper food temperature.

Cross contamination occurs when food comes in contact with a contaminated surface or utensil.  This can be prevented by following the “wash, rinse, sanitize” sequence when cleaning all surfaces and equipment between uses.  For pans and utensils, wash in hot soapy water, rinse in clean clear water, and sanitize with a solution of one cap full of bleach per gallon of clean water.

For in-place items such as large equipment and prep tables, wash and rinse as before, but sanitize by wiping with a clean cloth dampened in sanitizing solution.  These cloths should be stored in the “bleach bucket” between uses.  Also store all food, utensils, and single service items such as napkins or paper towels at least six inches off the floor, separate from all chemicals and cleansers.

Inadequate temperature control is also responsible for food borne illness.  Food should not be held for extended periods in the “danger zone”.  This is the temperature zone between 41 degrees and 140 degrees Fahrenheit, where bacterial growth occurs.  In addition, some bacteria produce toxins that are not destroyed by heat.  In other words, reheating food to 150 degrees will kill the bacteria, but the toxins remain and can cause serious illnesses such as botulism.

Be on the safe side by keeping your hot dogs frozen until they are placed in boiling water, then monitor the internal temperature with a thermometer when they are in the steamer.  Throw out any left over dogs at the end of the day.  Some people will tell you that you can save them and reheat them the next day, but I feel that serving leftover food is a disservice to your customers.

You may lose a couple bucks by throwing out your leftovers, but if someone gets sick from your dogs, your reputation (and your sales) will suffer irreparable damage.  Don’t be penny wise and dollar foolish.

Finally, you should know first aid for choking.  If someone cannot breathe, cough or speak – Ask, “Are you choking.  Can I help you?”  Then have someone call 911 while you administer first aid for choking as described by the Red Cross:

For adults:
•    Stand behind the person
•    Wrap your arms around their waist
•    Make a fist with one hand.  Place your fist, thumb side in, against the person’s stomach in the midline, just above the navel and well below the ribs
•    Grasp your fist with your other hand
•    Press into the stomach with a quick upward thrust
•    Repeat if necessary

For conscious child over one year old:
•    Stand or get on one knee behind the child
•    Place the thumb of your fist just above the child’s belly button, grab your fist with your other hand
•    Give quick upward thrusts until the object is removed or the child goes unconscious

For conscious infant under one year old:
•    To dislodge an object in the airway of an infant, perform 5 back blows and 5 chest thrusts by:
•    Supporting the head and neck with one hand, position the infant face down, head lower than trunk, straddling your forearm, supported on your thigh
•    Deliver five back blows with the heel of the hand between the infant’s shoulder blades
•    Turn the infant over by sandwiching the infant between your hands and forearms and turn onto it’s back.  With their head lower than their trunk, use 2 to 3 fingers on the center of the breastbone to deliver five chest thrusts.  Each thrust should be about ½ to 1 inch deep.
•    Repeat back blows and chest thrusts until foreign body is expelled or the infant becomes unconscious

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