The Centre for Food Safety of the FEHD announced today (16th) a risk assessment study on the microbiological quality of sandwiches. It tested 100 sandwich samples containing high-risk ingredients, such as eggs, cheese, ham, fresh fruits and vegetables, and found that pathogenic bacteria in all samples were Complying with the food safety criteria, only one slipped egg sandwich sample had a high total bacterial count, which was considered an unsatisfactory level.
The CFS believes that the situation may be caused by improper food handling, and has provided hygiene advice to the food premises concerned and requested the premises to take improvement measures.
The reporter once inquired with the Center for Food Safety about the brand and other information of the sandwich sample, but the department stated that the high total bacteria count did not affect the food safety, and did not disclose the details.
The Centre for Food Safety announced today (16th) a risk assessment study on the microbiological quality of sandwiches. It tested 100 sandwich samples containing high-risk ingredients and found that pathogenic bacteria in all samples met the food safety guidelines.
(File photo / Su Weiran)
Suspected mishandling of food resulted in high total bacteria count
From July to October last year, the CFS collected 100 samples of sandwiches containing high-risk ingredients at retail outlets for testing, including ingredients such as eggs, cheese, ham and fresh fruits and vegetables.
The test found that the pathogenic bacteria in all the samples, including Salmonella, Listeria and Staphylococcus aureus, met the CFS's food safety guidelines for microbial content. Only one sample of the slippery egg sandwich had an unsatisfactory level of aerobic colony count.
The CFS believes that this may be caused by improper food handling, such as poor storage of egg mixture, undercooked eggs or related to the sandwiches being kept at room temperature for a long time.
The CFS has provided hygienic advice to the food premises concerned, requiring the premises to take improvement measures, and then collect follow-up samples from the premises for analysis. The results of total bacterial count were satisfactory.
The total number of bacteria is a reflection of food quality indicators, the Center for Food Safety says it does not affect food safety
A spokesman for the CFS explained that the total bacterial count is not a food safety indicator, but an indicator of food quality. A high total bacterial count will not affect food safety.
The spokesman reiterated that the study found that the sandwiches were in compliance with the content guidelines stipulated in the "Guidelines for Microbiological Content in Foods".
High-risk individuals should not eat sandwiches with undercooked ingredients
The CFS also reminds the food trade that effective time and temperature control should be implemented when making sandwiches to prevent bacterial growth and ensure food safety.
It also reminds people at high risk, including pregnant women, young children, the elderly, people with weakened immune systems, and people who are receiving antibiotics or taking antacids, not to eat sandwiches that contain raw or undercooked ingredients.
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