How NEA ensures food handlers uphold good hygiene standards

WE THANK Mr Titus Reinarled Rozario for his feedback ("Food hygiene: Get eateries to clean up their act"; Dec 6).

We agree with him that food handlers need to be aware of, and practise, good hygiene habits to ensure that the food they prepare and serve is safe for consumption.

Licensees and operators of food retail outlets also have the legal and moral responsibility to put in place systems and processes to ensure high hygiene standards are observed by their food handlers at all times.

All food handlers are required to undergo mandatory basic food hygiene training before they are registered, and to undertake refresher training five years after completing their Basic Food Hygiene Course, and subsequently at 10-year intervals. More importantly, food handlers should apply what they have learnt from formal training in their daily practice.

Beyond formal training, licensees should constantly remind their food handlers of good hygiene practices through daily supervision and guidance.

Larger food establishments, such as restaurants and caterers, are required to appoint trained food hygiene officers to oversee and conduct audits on food preparation activities within their premises, so that food handlers remain vigilant and exercise good food hygiene practices at all times.

National Environment Agency (NEA) officers conduct regular inspections of food outlets to ensure compliance with our hygiene standards.

More attention is paid to poorer performing outlets and those deemed to pose higher risks should there be any fault in their processes, such as caterers. These are checked once a month.

Other premises are checked less frequently but minimally once every six months. During these inspections, our officers also educate and remind licensees and food handlers of proper food and personal hygiene practices.

The NEA takes enforcement action against errant operators who flout hygiene regulations. Licensees who are convicted of hygiene lapses may be liable to a fine not exceeding $2,000 and may have their licences suspended. So far this year, the NEA has suspended 58 licences.

Members of the public who notice any potential hygiene lapses that merit investigation are encouraged to contact NEA on 1800-225-5638 or via the MyENV app.

Tony Teo
Director, Environmental Public Health Operations
National Environment Agency

ST Forum, 16 Dec 2014

Food hygiene: Get eateries to clean up their act

I AM saddened to learn of the death of a four-year-old boy in January after eating tainted food ("Tainted nasi padang: Stall's contract terminated"; Nov 22).

The National Environment Agency (NEA) should take remedial action to prevent such incidents.

First, it should ensure food handlers have proper knowledge of food hygiene.

Currently, food handlers are required to attend a refresher course five years after passing the Basic Food Hygiene Course. The interval should be shortened to two or three years, to better reinforce what the food handlers have learnt.

Second, the NEA should step up inspections of food establishments.

If it does not have the manpower to conduct more regular checks, it can enlist the help of the Society of Environmental Health, whose members include former environmental health officers.

Third, the NEA should insist that all food establishments have an independent hygiene officer, whose sole duty is to look out for hygiene issues.

Titus Reinarled Rozario
ST Forum, 6 Dec 2014

Post by The Straits Times.

Old unhygienic habits die hard

MANDATORY training provides food handlers with knowledge on how food should be handled, but old habits die hard ("How NEA ensures food handlers uphold good hygiene standards"; Tuesday).

It is not uncommon to see food handlers with a bad cough or cold still on duty.

When it comes to the use of gloves, there is no lack of "ingenuity".

I have seen servers cut off the tips of their gloves to allow them to slice roast meat more thinly. Some use gloves in lieu of ladles to pat down food.

Another common practice is to scoop rice using a bowl wrapped in a plastic bag, even though this practice entails the server's fingers coming into contact with the rice.

Those caught engaging in improper food handling practices should be made to attend retraining at their employers' expense.

Customers can help by taking photos of these lapses and sending them to the National Environment Agency.

Unless good practices are internalised and enforced, sloppy practices will persist.

Bernard Tan
ST Forum, 18 Dec 2014

Food hygiene standards can be much better

THE National Environment Agency can do more to assure the public that hygiene standards here are in good order ("How NEA ensures food handlers uphold good hygiene standards"; Tuesday).

No one doubts that it has in place processes and training requirements that food handlers have to comply with. Despite these measures, serious lapses in food handling persist.

Here are some commonly observed ones:

- At yong tau foo stalls, the exposed food items - usually where queues form and people chat - are an open invitation to contamination.

- At roti prata and popiah stalls, the hawker tossing the prata or rolling the popiah is often seen handling cash as well.

- Buckets of used cutlery and plates are often left in open areas for a long time before being collected for washing - and the perfunctory way this is done makes one cringe.

- The use of plastic gloves, supposedly to ensure hygiene, is rendered pointless when the food handler handles cash with gloved hands.

I am certain there are many other similar practices that leave my fellow Singaporeans speechless. Why do these practices persist despite NEA inspections? Are they not considered health hazards?

Besides stepping up enforcement, the NEA may want to evaluate the best practices on food handling in other countries and adopt those that are feasible here.

For instance, going cashless is the norm at many foodcourts in neighbouring Asian countries; only vouchers or cash cards are accepted at their food stalls. It baffles me why such a practice has not been adopted in the "Smart City" of Singapore.

Merely stating and restating existing processes and requirements is not enough. What we need is practical guidance for our food handlers to do the right thing and minimise health risks to the public. The NEA has to lead the way.

Valerie Valberg-Yeoh (Mrs)
ST Forum, 18 Dec 2014

Food hygiene lapses persist, so NEA takes tough stance

WE THANK Mr Bernard Tan ("Old unhygienic habits die hard"; Forum Online) and Mrs Valerie Valberg-Yeoh ("Food hygiene standards can be much better") for their feedback last Thursday.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) has introduced various measures to raise the standard of food hygiene knowledge and practices among all retail food operators, such as training for food handlers, and encouraging good hygiene practices via the points demerit system, the requirement to have food hygiene officers, and a Food Safety Management System for caterers.

Despite these, we continue to find instances of hygiene lapses by food operators during our food hygiene inspections. This is why the NEA has to take a tough stance on errant food operators who flout hygiene regulations.

This year (as of Dec 12), the NEA has inspected more than 167,600 food premises and taken 2,182 enforcement actions against errant food operators. During these inspections, our officers also educate and remind licensees and food handlers about proper food and personal hygiene practices.

Licensees who are convicted of hygiene lapses may be liable to a fine not exceeding $2,000 and may have their licences suspended or revoked for repeated offences.

We hope that the public will support the NEA in ensuring that food handlers remain vigilant and exercise good food hygiene practices at all times, by reminding operators against unhygienic practices as well as reporting potential hygiene lapses that merit investigation to the NEA on 1800-225-5632 or via the MyENV app.

The new hawker centre at Block 208B New Upper Changi Road has implemented a cashless payment system as a payment option. We agree with Mrs Valberg-Yeoh that cashless transactions will ensure better hygiene.

Tony Teo
Director, Environmental Public Health Operations
National Environment Agency
ST Forum, 24 Dec 2014