How to be a good shopper: safe shopper 101

My husband recently sent me this image, with just a slick smile as the caption, needless to say, I was not impressed but I did not really have a valid argument against these “baseless allegations” so I did not dignify his unwelcome text with a response. Insulted as I may have been, I must admit that there was a large element of truth in his joke.

In his 1992 bestseller “Men are from Mars, women are from Venus” John Gray confirms that men and women are definitely different- differences which the marketing industry have totally capitalized on if you ask me. I mean we see it in the way that certain products are advertised and even in the way that stores are laid out or products are displayed. There’s a whole science to it -yeah with subcategories and classes of shoppers and all that jazz- if you’re interested in finding out more about that then this article by Michael Lewis from https://www.moneycrashers.com might pique your interest further. I found myself nodding ferociously as I read the statement “women tend to be more astute consumers than men, simply because they are willing to invest the time and energy necessary to research and compare products”… hmmm, maybe I do have an argument for hubby’s allegations after all!- I did it for research, your honour.

Now, to explain what this blog post has to do with the meme; sometime last week I paid a visit to my local grocery store to get a few items for dinner, and like a stereotypical woman I ended up touring the entire grocery store even though I only needed 3 items. It was during this unprovoked tour that I actually really got to see the shocking behaviour of grocery shoppers when it comes to food handling at store level, it was rather shocking to see how badly people treat high-risk food products in store- putting not only themselves at risk, but other shoppers too. I figure that we behave this way because we are either ridiculously lazy or we just don’t know any better. In hopes that it is the latter; here’s a little crash course in food-safe grocery shopping, safe shopper 101, if you will.

Clean hands in, clean hands out

If available, make use of the hand sanitizers and sanitizing wipes at the store entrance- or carry your own. Make sure you wipe down the handles of baskets and trolleys and sanitize your hands before you start your shopping, especially if you’re going to be sampling food in the store. Don’t forget to do the same as you leave the store as well.

While you’re saving the environment, save yourself too

Studies by Dr Charles Gerba of the University of Arizona have shown that bacteria such as E.coli grow well on materials such as towels and absorbent cloths, so wash your recyclable shopping bags regularly and ensure that they dry out fully before using them again.

Foodtech tip: buy a few reusable ice bricks and throw them in your reusable bag when you go shopping, these will help keep meat & chilled foods cold for a little longer during your commute home.

Follow a sequence

When grocery shopping, it is best to have some kind of sequence that you follow to ensure food safety. Add non-perishables like canned foods, dried foods and shelf stable items first, chilled and frozen foods should be added to your trolley as close to the end of your trip as possible as well as that grilled chicken you want to pass on as your own at dinner this evening! Anything ready to eat (RTE) should also be one of the last additions to your basket.

When buying chilled or frozen items like meat & poultry, choose cartons, packets & containers that are actually cold or frozen, make sure that the packaging is tightly sealed and intact, chicken should have a pink colour, not a grey or green tinge. When it comes to eggs, make sure they’re not dirty and aren’t broken or cracked.

Separate, separate, separate!

During my little impromptu tour of the grocery store, one of the things that really ruffled my food safety feathers was this

Cross-contamination is when contaminants, allergens or bacteria are unintentionally transferred from one surface to another leading to a potential harmful effect. Raw chicken is a common carrier for pathogens such as (amongst many others) Salmonella & Campylobacter jejuni which causes campylobacteriosis the third leading bacterial cause of food poisoning in the US with about 76 deaths from this bug every year. Although campylobacteriosis is a self-limiting gastroenteritis which doesn’t need antimicrobial therapy to treat, an estimated 1.5 in 1000 cases of infection can lead to severe complications called bacteremia and infection of various organ systems, such as meningitis, hepatitis, cholecystitis, and pancreatitis. Infections have also rarely been linked to miscarriage or neonatal sepsis

Did you notice how the word unintentionally is emphasized in the definition of cross-contamination? While the above image could be called cross-contamination, it could also easily be labelled as an act of bio-terrorism ( the use of infectious agents or other harmful biological or biochemical substances as weapons of terrorism), as the potential presence of pathogenic bacteria could lead to food poisoning for anyone who purchases and consumes the cucumbers under the raw chicken. Also, the chicken could most likely be in the temperature danger zone which means that any bacteria on it could be multiplying at an exponential rate and be at unacceptable levels by the time someone else picks it up to feed themselves or their family.

When Shopping:

Keep raw meat, poultry, and seafood separate from other foods in your trolley. Place these foods in plastic bags to prevent their juices from dripping onto other foods. Ensure that these foods are separated from other foods during check out. Do not re-use plastic bags that contained raw meat, poultry or seafood.

Do not purchase items that are not kept under correct storage temperatures, and, if you change your mind about a product, instead of becoming a bioterrorist- rather put it back where it belongs!

Inspect your food packaging

Avoid buying products with holes, cracks or any kind of damage- once again, frozen food should actually be frozen with no signs of thawing while refrigerated food should be cold to the touch.

Check seals for evidence of tampering or damage avoid dented, blown/ bulging and rusted cans like the plague! Bulging is a good indicator for the presence of Clostridium botulinum– the bacteria that causes botulism, while deep dents could mean that the seams in the can have been damaged allowing bacteria to enter the can.

Read the labels on the product, in 2015 SA and the USA agreed that South Africa would continue to receive trade benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) by importing about 65 000 tons of poultry from the U.S annually. This chicken is usually shipped in containers and kept frozen during transit then defrosted for display on store shelves, make sure to read all labelling on these products as the majority of these have a "do not refreeze" label on them and so are not suitable for bulk purchase to pack and freeze at home.

Take note of the expiry or sell-by date on products as well as these directly relate to the safety of the product, so not purchase products that have exceeded their expiry dates.

Purchase from reputable stores/ vendors

Now I know this may be a bit of a sensitive one, having grown up in a disadvantaged household for the majority of my life I know exactly how it feels to see a parent struggle to make ends meet. For a number of South Africans street vending is a common reality, we have parents, guardians and family members who are street vendors and like all of us are just trying to put food on the plate, but…

Of all the food safety-related interventions that we need in SA the street vendor project is a huge gaping, festering hole – I get heart palpitations from driving past Ebony Park and seeing the street vendors who sell dressed chickens soaked in the same bucket of bloody water on the side of the road, no refrigeration, no running water, no sanitation and I have to stop myself from screaming “don’t buy this stuff “to their patrons because I also understand that the economic situation forces people who don’t know any better to go into a business that they are ill-equipped for just to put bread on the table. As much as I hate bad food safety principles, I feel equally discontent about taking food out of people’s mouths. So I suggest we start educating our street vending parents, guardians and family members on the basics of food safety, who knows maybe one day we could have a simple yet effective food safety management system that works at the street vendor level. But until then, lets rather be safe than sorry and purchase high-risk items from reputable stores that have at minimum a certificate of acceptability and basic hygiene, temperature, waste and pest control in place

Food tech tip: Regulation 638: 2018 states that an establishment that sells, prepares or serves food should have a certificate of acceptability (COA) conspicuously displayed or immediately available upon request- lookout for this on your next trip to the grocery store!

Until the next post, follow me on all social media for quick tips and info, stay safe kids

Yours in Food safety

Thefoodtech_sa