Candidates registered in these basic food safety and food handling courses will all essentially cover the same material. Candidates will learn about food-handling techniques, sanitation, food-borne illness, health and hygiene, receiving and storing food, preparing food, serving food, and cleaning and sanitizing. This page will go into detail of some of the course content covered in these food safety courses.
Food Safety and Food Handling Courses
Candidates will cover provincial and legislative laws in relation to serving and handling food. Every province has its own food safety program and health by-laws. Candidates will learn the health regulations and provincial legislation in there area in relation to food safety. This include understanding of when to contact the health department and what precautions and information to prepare.
Course content
Course content includes a understanding of micro-organisms and microbiology. In order to prevent food poisonings and other harmful reactions from patrons candidates must have a good understanding of the microbiology involved in preparing, storing and handling food. Candidates will learn about the different types of bacteria, parasites, viruses, moulds and yeasts and how they relate to food health and safety. Candidates will learn how bacteria reproduces and the environments it thrives in including the ideal temperatures, food supplies, water, oxygen, time and pH. Candidates will learn what foodborne illnesses are, how they thrive and the signs and symptoms in patients that have induced them. The major types of foodborne illnesses include:
- Microbiological such as bacterial infections, bacterial intoxication, parasites and viruses. These are the most commonly reported micro-organisms that cause food poisoning.
- Allergies which are an over reaction of the immune system to a unwanted substances.
- Chemical which are poisons accidently added to food.
Candidates will learn preventative techniques with handling food. Candidates will learn techniques on how to prepare, handle and store food to prevent the above mentioned food poisonings. Candidates will learn about the proper storing temperatures for food and the “Danger Zone” temperatures for food. Course content will include understanding the proper cooking temperatures and re-heating temperatures of food such as poultry, meat, fish, pork, ground meat and fish. Candidates will also learn how to safely defrost food and how to prevent cross-contamination.
Food Poisonings and other Health Emergencies
Course content will include a significant amount of material and time spent on preventing food poisonings and other health emergencies. The most popular preventative measure is to wash your hands especially after handling hazardous or raw food, sneezing or coughing, touching something contaminated, smoking or using the washroom. Candidates will learn how and when to appropriately use gloves and how to maintain proper personal hygiene. A significant portion of class time will be spent on preventing and creating systems to prevent food contamination and food poisoning for patrons.
Course content of food safety or food handling courses varies depending on your province. All food courses cover essentially the same topics including safe food handling, preparing and storing techniques. Register for a food safety course today and learn how to keep your patrons, customers, family members and friends safe when preparing them food.