• Food production & quality
  • Food complaints
    
  • Food handlers
    
  • Food hazard warnings
    
  • Food hygiene star awards (This link will open in a new window)
    
  • Food inspections
    
  • Food poisoning
    
  • Food premises registration & approval
    
  • Food safety at home
    
  • Food sampling
    
  • Food team safety service plan
    
  • Home catering & setting up a food business
    
  • Hygiene and safety training
    

• Bin collection & recycling

• Business

• Community and living

• Council and democracy

• Council tax, benefits and finance

• Housing

• Job vacancies

• Learning and education

• Leisure and culture

• Pay my bill

• Policing and public safety

• Social care and health

• Transport and streets

• Useful links

Health & Environmental Services

Tel: 03450 450 063

Fax: 01954 713149
Email to contact:
Health & Environmental services (This link will open in a new window)
Refuse service (This link will open in a new window)

Environmental FAQs

• How do I report an abandoned vehicle?
• What should I do if I find a stray dog?
• How do I find out about private land ownership?
• How do I complain about a nuisance?

• More environmental FAQs

Food Safety at Home

We all expect our shops to sell us food that is safe, but how can we be sure that the food we buy and take home is safe?

• Top tips for buying your food
• Top tips for keeping food safe at home
• Which foods are high risk?
• Frozen products
• Stocking your fridge
• Packed lunches

buying

Top tips for buying your food

• Always check 'use by' and 'best before' dates marked on package labels
• Take chilled food straight home or use an insulated bag
• Look out for poor shop hygiene
• Don't accept damaged packages and tins
• Make sure that raw meat or poultry is completely wrapped
• When packing your shopping bag, keep raw foods and ready-to-eat foods apart
• Try to buy chilled or frozen foods last
• Pack chilled and frozen food together, preferably in a cool bag

At home, careless handling can lead to germs or bacteria growing on your food. If you then eat this food, you could easily get food poisoning. One bacteria can turn into ONE MILLION bacteria in less than SEVEN HOURS at warm temperatures (anything that is warmer than a fridge). So if you leave your food out on the worktop or don't cook it thoroughly, you could be heading for trouble. Remember, some food poisoning diseases such as salmonella can cause severe illness and sometimes death.

keeping

Top tips for keeping food safe at home

• Take chilled food straight home after purchase, then put in your fridge or freezer at once
• Prepare and store raw and cooked foods separately. Keep raw meat and fish at the bottom of the fridge
• Keep the coldest part of your fridge at 0-5°C
• Check "Use by" dates. Don't keep food beyond this date
• Wash hands thoroughly before preparing food, after handling raw meat or fish, after going to the toilet or after handling pets
• Keep pets away from food dishes and work tops
• Keep you kitchen clean. Wash work tops and utensils between handling food which is to be cooked and food which is not
• Cook food thoroughly. Follow the instructions on the pack. If you reheat food, make sure it is piping hot
• Do not eat food containing uncooked eggs. Keep eggs in the fridge
• Stir microwaved food halfway through cooking. Make sure it is piping hot before serving and observe any standing times to make sure it is cooked right through
• Keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold. Don't just leave them standing around

risk

Which foods are high risk?

Dairy Products - Milk, cream, cheese (e.g.. soft cheeses or those ripened by mould or bacteria (e.g. Stilton), dairy based desserts like fromage frais, mousses, creme caramels or products containing cream.
Cooked Products - Foods containing eggs, meat, fish, dairy products, cereals (including rice), pulses and vegetables or sandwiches which contain these ingredients.
Sliced/cured meats like ham and smoked fish.
Prepared ready-to-eat foods - Such as prepared vegetables, vegetable salads like coleslaw or products containing mayonnaise.

frozen

Frozen products

Some products can be cooked from frozen, but always follow the manufacturers instructions on the label.
Frozen poultry, or other high risk foods, should be thoroughly defrosted before cooking. A Turkey of 4-7kg (9-15 lbs) takes 24-36 hours to defrost at room temperature (18°C) but 66 hours under refrigeration temperatures. Poultry is fully defrosted when the body is pliable and there are no ice crystals on or in the body cavity.

fridge

Stocking your fridge

Cooked foods that you want to save for later should be cooled to refrigeration temperature as fast as possible. This is because some bacteria can survive the cooking process and will grow when the food is cooling down and its temperature reaches the bacteria's preferred growing temperature. So put the food in the fridge as soon as it's cooled down.

All raw meat, chicken/poultry, sausages, fish etc should always be stored below cooked foods and foods that are ready to eat e.g. cheese, cooked meat, salads etc.

lunch

Packed lunches

The advice given below is relevant to anyone preparing packed lunches or picnics.

• Packed lunches can be a healthy and nutritious lunch but are often prepared many hours in advance.
• Food left in school bags in warm classrooms or next to radiators is an ideal breeding ground for the bacteria that cause food poisoning.
• A recent classroom survey showed that packed lunches were frequently at a temperature of above 20oC. To be safe, food should be kept below 8oC.

Officially notified cases of food poisoning rose to 83,000 in 1996. However, most food poisoning is never recorded and experts believe that the actual number of food poisoning cases in the UK is around one million per year.

Preparing Lunches

• Wash and dry your hands before you start.
• Cover any cuts with a waterproof plaster.
• Clean work surfaces with an anti bacterial cleaning solution before and after food preparation.
• Check that all food to be used is within the 'use by' or 'best before' date.
• Wash all salad ingredients under cold running water, including bags of ready-prepared salad.
• Keep raw and cooked foods separate during storage and preparation. If possible use different chopping boards and utensils for cooked and raw products. Disinfect surfaces in between preparation of raw and cooked foods.
• Meat and poultry should be cooked thoroughly to destroy bacteria. It should be cooled as quickly as possible, within 90 minutes, and stored in the fridge until required. Never put hot food in the fridge.
• Eggs must be hard-boiled; place in a pan of cold water and boil for 10 minutes.
• Sandwiches are best made fresh in the morning. They can be made in advance but should be kept overnight in the fridge. To keep sandwiches fresh, wrap with greaseproof paper or foil, and place in a plastic sandwich box.
• Check your refrigerator with a thermometer regularly to ensure that it is working properly.

Storing Lunches

• Warm conditions encourage the growth of bacteria so it's essential to keep packed lunches cool.
• Whenever possible, chill food and any drink to be included as this will help to keep food cool.
• The best way to keep food cool is to pack it in an insulated cool bag along with an ice pack. Cold air sinks, so place the ice pack on top of the food. Cool bags should be used throughout the year.
• Small cartons of juice can be frozen and packed with sandwiches to help keep them cool.
• Pack any snacks for breaks separately from lunch items, as this will prevent the lunch pack from being opened too often.