CHAPTER 11 FOOD SAFETY AND HYGIENE Public analyst laboratories
Public analyst laboratories are modern food safety facilities that play an important role in ensuring food available to consumers is safe and wholesome by:
• analysing food and water samples to detect for the presence of biological contaminants, e.g. salmonella, and chemical contaminants, e.g. cadmium. This is often completed on food samples gathered by EHOs from various food businesses. The general public can pay a fee to have food and water tested
• testing foods to ensure compliance with food legislation and labelling, e.g. testing to ensure legal limits of colourings were used.
Local authorities
Local authorities aim to ensure high standards of food safety are maintained by vetinary officers who: • carry out inspections of
domestic abattoirs to ensure high hygiene standards
• monitor practices in meat- processing plants for hygiene and safety.
Safe Food (the Food Safety Promotion Board)
Safe Food aims to promote awareness and knowledge of food safety and nutrition issues by: • implementing public awareness and educational campaigns • creating food safety and hygiene resources for teachers.
Abattoirs are slaughterhouses.
i L Food test in a public analyst laboratory
Inspection of an abattoir
Leaving Certificate Home Economics 255
FOOD LEGISLATION AND NATIONAL FOOD SAFETY AGENCIES
