Food Safety

Hand in glove

As the importance of food safety continues to rise, restaurateurs and other food service operators have added a new item to their uniforms-disposable gloves. Sanjeev Bhar delves into the importance and right usage of gloves.

While sound handwashing practices should always be the first line of defense in safe food handling, gloves can play an added role by providing a barrier between the food and the worker's hands. Glove is as much a gastronomical need like it is in medical science, and is a key protagonist in food areas. It is supposedly the hallmark of food hygiene. Or is it not? The answer to it, many feel is very subjective; the degree varies with individual perceptions. There is no compelling evidence that wearing gloves ensures better hygiene then working with bare hands, when handling food. Gloves may be aesthetically more pleasing than bare hands, but need to be cared for in the same manner as hands. Gloves are sometimes even criticised on the grounds that they slow down food operatives."

Covering up

It is obvious that glove usage can prevent dangerous pathogens from being passed on to consumers. But, are proper guidelines being followed and enforced in the food industry, questions Khurshed Alam Khan, manager R&D, ITC Hotel Maurya Sheraton & Towers. He says, "When an employee puts on gloves without washing hands, micro-organisms may contaminate the outer surfaces. Also, the inside of the glove is a perfect environment for pathogens to flourish; which remains warm and moist."

Bharti Madan, hygiene manager, InterContinental, Nehru Place, New Delhi, says, "Although it is not mandatory, wearing gloves is a good practice to ensure high standards of hygiene, and is in line with the requirements of food safety." A Glove is treated as an additional layer of skin that acts as a barrier between bare hands and food. But can we use it everywhere? S Nandi, HACCP consultant of Jaypee Group of Hotels believes, "It needs to be understood, gloves cannot be used everywhere; it may be appropriate in food assembly when manual contact is unavoidable, such as sandwich, salad, and taco preparation. Incorrect usage of disposable gloves leads to food contamination."

When gloves are worn, even with hourly changes or washing between glove changes, there is a possibility of high level of contamination on the outside of gloves. Regulating glove use by food handlers' poses some difficulty as there is little or no research on how long gloves should be worn. United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) states that single-use gloves should be used for only one task and discarded when damaged or soiled.

Selecting the right one

A key aspect of proper glove usage is choosing the right glove for the right job. Devraj Halder, executive chef of Uppal's Orchid, New Delhi, says, "Gloves for food handling, should be of recognised brand and ISI marked. Many hotels prefer only imported gloves where there is no residual smell of latex or rubber. The gloves should suit one's specific needs."

"One should prefer disposable single task gloves, fulfilling the criteria of toxicology, physical properties, microbial testing, barrier resistance and sanitation," says Nandi. Several types of gloves are utilised by food handlers, including mesh for cutting, rubber for dishwashing, and disposable plastic for food handling. Most disposable gloves are made from natural rubber latex, vinyl and nitrile. Latex gloves are most common. "Although, no glove full proof. It primarily depends upon the user capability and the user work environment. Latex though is relatively better in many areas," claims Khan. However, Nandi is of the opinion that frequent latex glove use is a risk. With increase in latex glove use, latex allergy has become more prevalent and causes hazards among food handlers and latex-sensitive customers. It is important to use only gloves with low protein and powder contact for good health condition. "Polyurethane (surgical sterilised) gloves are best to use for food contact surfaces," suggests Khan. "It is difficult to make specific recommendations as to where and how the various types of gloves should be used in the food environment because of the differing food types and handling configurations. Ultimately, safety managers should match glove to worker and process effectiveness through in-use performance evaluations," explains Nandi.

Halder presents a checklist of gloves:

• Latex gloves for butchery, sorting and raw food processing
• Polythene gloves for dispensing ready to eat food
• Metal wire mesh gloves for butchery
• Rubber gloves for cleaning jobs in kitchens, wet areas and use in deep freezers
• Toughened rubber gloves for stubborn stains, use of corrosive agents and dirt handling
• White soft cotton gloves for silver service

Handling, Cleaning & Disposal

The hygiene circle related to glove is incomplete, without a customary routine cleaning of gloves and rightful disposal after its expiry. While gloves in use, the possible microbial build-up on both the application site and the protected hand sides of the gloves is accepted. Gloves should be adjunct to good handwashing practices and no way a replacement for it. "We should keep in mind that gloves should be changed with changing tasks especially from raw to finished food items. Also, whenever an ongoing task is interrupted gloves should be changed," says Madan. She pin points that even with the same task one must change gloves after every two hours of continual use and torn gloves are a strict no-no."

After using gloves each time, it is necessary to go through absolute hand washing with soap and water, and possibly another wash with a disinfectant. It is recommended that (just like hands are washed and dried before gloves are worn) gloved hands should be washed after any event which should properly lead to the washing of hands as gloves will become contaminated in a manner similar to hands.

Disposing off is another issue where latex gloves used by an individual for a single day’s work need to be disposed, says Halder. He adds, "The usual way for latex glove cleaning is to soak it in Potassium Permanganate (KMnO4) solution in between usage. Polythene gloves to be disposed after single specific use."

Rubber gloves are sanitised with KMnO4 solution and kept in between use and dried thoroughly. One has to be careful of mild dew or any fungus formation on damp gloves not used for some time, which need to be cleaned with liquid detergent and scrubbed inside out, suggests Halder.

White cotton gloves need chlorine wash and bleaching. Gloves should be discarded and replaced as soon as any breach is made in the fabric. The gloves should be segregated and be decontaminated by the use of sanitizers, before disposing off for treatment or recycling.