FDA States Gloves May Be Source Of Cross-Contamination
The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Food Code 2017 document is definitely not a quick read, but there were a few items worth noting about disposable gloves for food handling. Most notably, a section about Inspection Reports notes a list of monitored supervisory duties needed to reduce risk factors.
Gloves used properly: the observation of food preparation activities and glove-use by food employees is necessary. There should be a discussion with the pic* on how gloves are used, if applicable, in food preparation activities. Gloves may serve as a source of cross contamination if misused.
The Eagle Protect™ team know how important glove type and quality is when handling food, and the FDA’s information is a good reminder. But what does “misused” mean? We dug further and pulled a few sections together to compile what the Food Code considers proper glove use.
1. HAND WASHING
“Even though bare hands should never contact exposed, ready-to-eat food, thorough hand washing is important in keeping gloves or other utensils from becoming vehicles for transferring microbes to the food.”
When to wash: “Before donning gloves to initiate a task that involves working with FOOD”
2. CONTACT WITH SURFACES
The Food Code defines disposable gloves as “utensils,” therefore they have to meet the requirements related to “utensil” construction, good repair, cleaning and storage.
“Pathogens can be transferred to food from utensils that have been stored on surfaces which have not been cleaned and sanitized.”
This part of the code means it matters where gloves are stored and what surfaces they touch as both can lead to cross-contamination of food.
3. DISPOSAL
“If used, SINGLE-USE gloves shall be used for only one task such as working with READY-TO-EAT FOOD or with raw animal FOOD, used for no other purpose, and discarded when damaged or soiled, or when interruptions occur in the operation.”
“Gloves must be discarded when soil or other contaminants enter the inside of the glove.”
4. USE WITH READY-TO-EAT (RTE) FOODS
“Except when washing fruits and vegetables as specified under §3-302.15 or as specified in (D) and (E) of this section, FOOD EMPLOYEES may not contact exposed, READY-TO-EAT FOOD with their bare hands and shall use suitable UTENSILS such as deli tissue, spatulas, tongs, single-use gloves, or dispensing EQUIPMENT”
“As a final barrier, bare-hand contact with ready-to-eat food (i.e., food that is edible without washing or is not subsequently subjected to a pathogen kill step) is prohibited and suitable utensils such as spatulas, tongs, single-use gloves, or dispensing equipment are required to be used.”
Root Cause Analysis (RCA)
Technological advances have allowed the U.S. public health system to get better at identifying foodborne outbreaks. There were 902 foodborne outbreaks reported in 2015, up from 801 in 2011 - food contamination is not increasing, but the ability to detect contaminants has improved.
This technological improvement used by government agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration and the CDC to identify, track and contain outbreaks, allows for better detection of the foodborne illnesses (FBIs) source.
Frank Yiannas, Global Director of Food Safety for Walmart tweeted:
Foodborne illness detection is outpacing foodborne illness prevention. Food safety is a race. We must accelerate “prevention”.
Rather than focus on solely identifying and containing outbreaks, understanding how and why a foodborne illness outbreak occurred is essential to avoid future outbreaks and reduce the estimated 48 million illnesses caused each year by food in the US.
The investigative method known as root cause analysis (RCA) can help determine the underlying reason why contamination occurred and why the food safety systems in place did not prevent it. It is a powerful preventative method to learn and share from past failures, although it currently remains underused.
In Conclusion
Studies consistently show the type of glove used in food handling can either reduce or increase the risk of cross-contamination in food handling. Read more about why the cross-contamination potential is increased with vinyl gloves and reduced with quality Eagle nitrile gloves. The updates to the Food Code support what we’ve always known, using a disposable glove properly is as important as using the correct type of glove.
Special attention should be given to the potential for hands as a vehicle of contamination. Ensuring that hands are washed using the proper procedure and at the appropriate times must be a top priority during every inspection. Data show that viruses can be tenacious even in the presence of good hand washing. Inspectors should observe employee use of utensils and gloves during the preparation and service of ready-to-eat foods and ingredients, such as salads and sandwiches.
Disposable gloves must be considered in the root cause analysis (RCA) of the cross-contamination of food more as they are often the last product to handle food. 15% of foodborne illness outbreaks implicating disposable glove cross-contamination (CDC et al). Barry Michaels, the international scientific consultant on food safety, has partnered with Eagle to further our food safety research of gloves.
Contact us to better understand this research better and how Eagle products can enhance your food safety programs or to sample the quality and safety difference for yourself for free!
