Personal Hygiene

Introduction

We must comply with our legal obligations concerning food hygiene. One vital aspect of this is each individual’s personal hygiene. The requirement can be summarised as follows.

Every person working in a food handling area shall maintain a high degree of personal cleanliness and shall wear suitable, clean and, where appropriate, protective clothing.

The phrase ‘personal cleanliness’ includes any practices and habits that can affect the safety of the food. The rules are stricter for people who directly handle the food and drink than for people who just work in the Coffee Shop.

Principles

Everyone in the Coffee Shop

These principles apply to all our staff and volunteers who work in the Coffee Shop.

· You must wear clean clothes.

· Do not smoke or spit in the kitchen.

You must immediately tell the duty Manager if:

· You know or suspect you suffer from or carry a disease that may be transmitted through food.

· You are afflicted with an infected wound, a skin infection or sores, or if you have diarrhoea or any similar condition (such as a stomach upset).

Everyone working with food

These principles apply to all our staff and volunteers who handle food or drink in the Coffee Shop: by preparing it, by serving it, or in any other way. They are in addition to those described above.

· If your hair is long enough, tie it back.

· Wear an apron and head covering. Remove these before you leave the premises.

· Keep your hands clean by washing frequently in running water.

· Keep your finger nails short.

· Do not wear a watch or nail varnish.

· Do not eat or drink (but the cook can taste dishes in a hygienic way during preparation).

· Cover wounds that may cause contamination with bright waterproof dressings that are easy to spot if they come off.

· Do not wear jewellery (other than sleepers in pierced ears and a plain wedding band) or false nails.