Spring is the season when microorganisms, bacteria, and fungi multiply. Food safety is particularly important in this season. Food is the first priority for the people, and food is the first priority for the people. Everyone’s health is closely related to food safety. During food production and processing, cleaning and disinfection are key steps to ensure food safety. This article will explore common cleaning and disinfection methods, especially the key role chlorine disinfection plays.
1. Cleaning agents and disinfectants
In food production and processing, cleaning agents and disinfectants are indispensable tools. They are used to remove dirt, harmful microorganisms, and other potential sources of food contamination. Here are some common cleaning agents and disinfectants:
Water: Water is a basic detergent and is widely used in food production. By applying physical energy, such as heat energy, stirring, flow friction and pressure injection, water can effectively clean food and equipment to ensure hygienic safety.
Alkaline aqueous solution (NaOH): Alkaline aqueous solution with moderate composition has a powerful degreasing and cleaning effect. With moderate heating and spraying, alkali aqueous solutions can better clean equipment, facilities, pipes, etc. to ensure the hygiene of food production.
Surfactant: Surfactant, also known as artificial synthetic cleaning agent, has the function of promoting liquid penetration, melting and foaming. They are widely used in the cleaning and disinfection process of production and operation sites to ensure thorough cleaning of equipment and surfaces.
These cleaning agents and disinfectants play a vital role in food production, helping to eliminate potential sources of food contamination.
2. Cleaning and disinfection methods
Cleaning and sanitizing are critical steps in ensuring food safety. Here are some common cleaning and disinfecting methods:
1. Physical disinfection method:
Sterilization and disinfection of mechanical equipment: This is a method of using mechanical methods to remove contaminated harmful microorganisms from production and operation sites and mechanical equipment, containers, pipelines, etc. Dry or wet cleaning is the most commonly used method. Dirt and pollution sources that are not conducive to the growth of microorganisms can be removed through flushing, brushing, wiping, wiping, sweeping, shoveling, ventilation and filtration. These methods have the advantages of simplicity, convenience and economy.
Thermal disinfection and sterilization: Thermal disinfection is a method that has been used earlier and has reliable actual results. It includes boiling, circulating steam, pasteurization at low temperature (62~65°C, 30 minutes), infrared sterilization, etc. By raising the temperature, microorganisms can be effectively killed to ensure food safety.
Radiation disinfection and sterilization: Radiation disinfection includes ultraviolet disinfection and ionizing radiation disinfection and sterilization.
Ultraviolet disinfection: Ultraviolet rays are a low-energy electromagnetic radiation wave, and the ultraviolet rays near the short wave band have powerful sterilization power. At this stage, 253.7nm ultraviolet wavelength is widely used for sterilization, and artificial ultraviolet germicidal lamps are usually used for ultraviolet disinfection.
Ionizing radiation disinfection and sterilization: Ionizing radiation disinfection is a low-temperature sterilization method that uses rays and electronic radiation to penetrate objects and kill microorganisms inside them. Because this method of sterilization does not increase the temperature of the items being irradiated, it is called “cold” sterilization. Electronic radiation can penetrate objects and is not limited by the packaging and form of the objects, so it is widely used in the food industry.
2. Chemical disinfection method:
Chemical disinfection methods use chemical cleaners for cleaning and disinfection. There are many types of disinfectants commonly used in food processing operations, including:
Chlorine-containing compounds: including bleaching powder, calcium hypochlorite, chlorine dioxide, sodium dichloroisocyanurate, etc. These compounds play a key role in sterilization and disinfection.
Alcohols: For example, 75% ethanol disinfection is one of the commonly used sterilization methods.
Acids: Commonly used acid disinfectants include lactic acid, used for disinfection and cleaning.
Peroxide: This type of disinfectant includes peracetic acid, hydrogen peroxide and ozone, etc., and has a powerful bactericidal effect.
3. Cleaning and disinfection of food workers’ hands
In the food industry, workers’ hands are often in contact with food, becoming the main route of food contamination. There are many types of microorganisms on the skin of hands, especially in skin folds and fingertips. These microorganisms are divided into transient and resident bacteria, and they may threaten food safety. Staphylococcus aureus and enteric pathogens are common microorganisms that contaminate fingers.
Research shows that workers in the food industry, especially in the meat and non-staple food industries, have a high E. coli detection rate, exceeding 50% or even reaching 64%. In the pastry industry, the detection rate of E. coli is over 80%. In comparison, the detection rates of E. coli on the hands of general citizens and workers were 13% and 8% respectively.
Therefore, scientific hand cleaning and disinfection are crucial to ensure food safety. Proper hand hygiene methods include:
Apply soap to your hands, work out enough lather, and clean your hands carefully, paying special attention to your nails.
Use plenty of running water to clean soap suds from your hands.
Apply a few drops of disinfectant soap containing chlorine to your hands, then scrub your hands carefully to ensure they are clean and disinfected.
Finally, use warm air to dry your hands.
These simple but important steps can help reduce the risk of food contamination and ensure food safety. Food handlers should keep these methods in mind to protect consumer health.
4. The importance of chlorine disinfection
This article has explored the critical role of cleaning and disinfection in food production, specifically physical and chemical cleaning methods. However, there is one disinfection method that plays a vital role in ensuring food safety, and that is chlorine disinfection.
Chlorine disinfection is a method of cleaning and disinfection through the use of chlorine-containing disinfectants. Chlorine-containing disinfectants such as bleach, calcium hypochlorite, chlorine dioxide and sodium dichloroisocyanurate can effectively kill microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi and viruses. The role of chlorine disinfection is to ensure that food production equipment is clean and surfaces are sterile, thereby reducing the risk of food contamination. The following is the importance of chlorine disinfection in food production:
1. High sterilization efficacy: Chlorine disinfectant is very efficient in killing microorganisms. Chlorine-containing disinfectants can quickly kill bacteria, fungi and viruses, including some pathogenic microorganisms such as E. coli, salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, etc. This helps prevent food contamination by these microorganisms and reduces the risk of foodborne illness.
2. Widely applicable: Chlorine-containing disinfectants can be used for cleaning and disinfecting a variety of food production sites and equipment. From processing equipment to work surfaces, from pipes to containers, chlorine disinfection can be used to ensure hygiene and safety. This versatility makes chlorine an indispensable tool in the food industry.
4. Easy to operate: Using chlorine-containing disinfectants is relatively easy and does not require complex equipment or special training. This reduces operational complexity and food handlers can relatively easily adopt chlorine disinfection as a method of ensuring hygiene.
5. Economical and efficient: Chlorine-containing disinfectants are usually more economical in price and can achieve good results with less usage. This is particularly important in large-scale food production, as it reduces the cost of cleaning and sterilization.
6. Long-lasting effect: The disinfection effect of chlorine-containing disinfectants is relatively long-lasting. Once a surface is disinfected, it can continue to perform its antiseptic effect for a period of time, reducing the risk of re-contamination.
in conclusion
As spring approaches, ensuring food safety becomes even more important. Microorganisms, bacteria and fungi multiply rapidly during this season and may pose a threat to food. Cleaning and disinfection are key steps to ensure food safety, and chlorine disinfection, as one of the key methods, has the characteristics of efficient sterilization, wide applicability, efficient cleaning and cost-effectiveness, so it plays an indispensable role in the food industry. indispensable role. Food workers need to follow correct cleaning and disinfection procedures to ensure their hands and work environment are clean and sterile to reduce the risk of food contamination. The use of chlorine disinfection is an effective means to maintain food safety and should be valued and adopted by the food industry and practitioners. In the food industry, chlorine disinfection will continue to play an important role in ensuring that our food is harmless, hygienic and safe.
Hopefully this article will raise awareness of food safety and encourage the food industry to take appropriate cleaning and sanitizing measures to ensure food is safe during the spring and other seasons. Food safety is not only related to personal health, but also to the well-being of the entire society, so it should become everyone’s shared responsibility. Only through appropriate measures and attention can we ensure that we enjoy hygienic, safe food at every meal.