Preventing cross-contamination
Most food poisoning outbreaks come down to the same thing: bacteria moving from raw food to food that won’t be cooked again. Keeping the two apart is the single biggest thing a kitchen does for safety.
The four ways it spreads
- Food to food: raw meat juices dripping onto a salad below it.
- Equipment to food: a board or knife used for raw chicken then for bread.
- Hands to food: handling raw food, then ready-to-eat food, without washing.
- Cloths and surfaces: a wiping cloth or worktop that spreads bacteria around.
Storage: raw below ready-to-eat
Ideally keep raw and ready-to-eat food in separate fridges. In one fridge, always put raw meat, poultry, fish and eggs on the bottom shelves, below ready-to-eat and cooked food, so nothing can drip down onto it. Keep all food covered, labelled and date-marked. Check fridge temperatures as part of your temperature checks.
Separate equipment and colour coding
Use dedicated boards, knives and utensils for raw and for ready-to-eat food. The common colour code is:
- Red — raw meat
- Blue — raw fish
- Yellow — cooked meat
- Green — salad and fruit
- Brown — vegetables
- White — bakery and dairy
Don’t rely on washing one board between raw and ready-to-eat use in a busy kitchen; separate boards are safer.
Hands and cleaning
- Wash hands thoroughly after handling raw food and before touching ready-to-eat food.
- Clean and disinfect surfaces and equipment between raw and ready-to-eat tasks, following the contact time on the product.
- Use disposable paper towels, or colour-coded cloths changed often, not one cloth for everything.
- Keep a cleaning schedule so nothing is missed.
Allergen cross-contamination
The same care applies to allergens: a trace of an allergen moving onto a dish that’s meant to be free of it can make someone seriously ill. Use clean equipment and surfaces, and keep your allergen information accurate.
Why it matters
EU food hygiene law (Regulation (EC) No 852/2004) requires food to be protected from contamination at every stage. Cross-contamination, especially with E. coli O157, is behind some of the most serious outbreaks and enforcement actions. Build these steps into your plan and record the cleaning and temperature checks that support them. In Hygivo, cleaning tasks and temperature rounds are on your team’s phones, with the person and time on every record.
See the FSAI Safe Catering pack. This is general information, not advice for your business. Your food safety management system (HACCP plan) and FSAI guidance are the reference. Hygivo is not affiliated with or endorsed by the FSAI.
Questions
What is cross-contamination?
When harmful bacteria or allergens move from one food, surface, hand or piece of equipment to another, usually from raw food to ready-to-eat food. It is one of the most common causes of food poisoning.
How do I store raw and ready-to-eat food?
Keep them apart. Ideally use separate fridges. In the same fridge, always put raw meat, poultry, fish and eggs on the bottom shelves, below ready-to-eat food, so nothing drips onto food that won’t be cooked again. Keep everything covered and labelled.
What do the colour-coded chopping boards mean?
A common system: red for raw meat, blue for raw fish, yellow for cooked meat, green for salad and fruit, brown for vegetables, and white for bakery and dairy. Using the right board and knife for each food stops bacteria moving between them.
Is cross-contamination part of HACCP?
Yes. Separating raw and ready-to-eat food, and the cleaning and hand washing that go with it, are controls in any food safety management system based on HACCP.
Related
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