The Government Analyst-Food and Drug Department (GA-FDD) yesterday urged persons selling ready-to-eat food to ensure that it is served at the right temperatures to avoid customers falling prey to food poisoning.
A press release issued by the Department yesterday said that this can be achieved by using warmers and chillers.
The Department’s advisory comes just days before persons head out to Mashramani celebrations, which attracts a large number of roadside vendors selling a variety of items, including food.
According to the release, the Department has observed that some caterers and vendors when delivering and/or selling ready to eat foods consistently “allow food to be kept in the danger zone (room temperature or temperature between 100C – 60 0C) for in excess of two hours.” This practice, according to the release, allows for the rapid growth and multiplication of pathogenic (bad) bacteria that may result in food poisoning or food intoxication by bacteria or their toxins when used by consumers. Unsuspecting consumers, it was stated, are then presented with food-borne disease symptoms, such as diarrhoea, acute gastroenteritis (AGE), vomiting and stomach cramps in some cases.
In 2009, the release said, the Ministry of Public Health in collaboration with the Pan-American Health Organization, conducted a Burden of Illness (BOI) study where it was reported that the overall monthly average of self-reported cases of AGE was 7.7% and the yearly prevalence was 1.0 episode per person-year. The statistics generated from that BOI appears to be higher than similar studies conducted in other countries, suggesting that diarrhoeal illness is common in Guyana with public health and economic significance.
“Consumers are therefore advised to purchase foods that are served in warmers or chillers where applicable and food service providers/vendors have a responsibility to ensure foods, particularly high-risk foods, during storage, transportation, distribution or when served are hot-above 640C or chilled-below 50C,” the release said.
It added that the GA-FDD will continue to build capacity in its food microbiological laboratory to test and analyze samples of foods submitted by environmental health officers from the regions and public health inspectors in the city and municipalities in support of their surveillance and regulatory oversight of the food service industry.
