Why food safety management is importantAs everyone must eat food to live, everyone is at risk of getting food poisoning. Businesses are required to make sure the food they handle, store, display and sell is safe and suitable for people to eat. Councils are required by law to ensure that food businesses reduce the risk of unsafe or unsuitable food being sold in their communities.
Food poisoning can make people sick, and has killed some people. A report in 2005 in Australia by the organisation OzFoodNet lists all the foodborne diseases, the number of people affected and number of deaths. This organisation conducts surveillance on foodborne diseases.
Many cases are not reported, but it is estimated that more than five million Australians a year get sick from eating food they didn't know was bad. Signs of food poisoning include diarrhoea (the 'runs'), vomiting, headache, and fever. In some cases, food poisoning can cause meningitis (infection of the brain) or septicaemia (blood poisoning). The pain can be so bad that some people need to see a doctor and get injections (needles).
All people are at risk of getting food poisoning. Young children, pregnant women and elderly people are most at risk of food poisoning due to reduced immune systems (especially if they get diarrhoea and lose too much body fluid (dehydrate). These are common signs of food poisoning. Some people can die if they do not get medical treatment.
The aim of the Queensland food legislation and the national Food Standards Code is to ensure that the food people buy does not harm them or make them sick. Serious penalties can be applied to people who sell food that causes injury or sickness. Only people that have been authorised under the relevant sections of the Food Act 2006 (the Act) can take legal action against offenders. Currently most EHWs are not authorised under the Act.
Food poisoning is most often caused by bacteria such as salmonella and listeria. Bacteria live naturally in the environment (air, water and soil) and inside people, animals and birds. They become a danger when their numbers grow in food before it is eaten by people. Bacteria grow best in warm temperatures (between 35˚C and 37˚C), which is around normal human body temperature, but will grow between 5˚C and 60˚C. Food that is left out of the refrigerator for too long is a real risk, especially meat (eg. raw or cooked beef, chicken, fish, pork), dairy products (eg. milk, cheese, yoghurt, custard, cream), egg products (eg. quiche) and some cereal-based products (eg. gravy, cooked rice, cooked pasta).
Mould on food (eg. stale bread) and viruses (eg. hepatitis A) can also cause food poisoning.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) outlines Five Keys to Safe Food:
Fact sheets have been developed by Queensland Health, titled:
You'll find more about preventing food poisoning in Community Awareness Campaigns and Resources and Programs.
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