Happy dining! Food is officially safer in Dubai

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Happy dining! Food is officially safer in Dubai

Dubai - Number of poisoning cases in Dubai is below international standards.

By Sherouk Zakaria

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Published: Wed 24 Aug 2016, 7:52 PM

The Dubai Municipality has confirmed that the number of food poisoning cases in the emirate is below average.  
Food Safety Department officials told Khaleej Times that the indicating number used to monitor the seriousness of food poisoning is if 70 suspected cases were detected out of every 100,000.   "Currently, we are below that number," said Khalid Sharif Al Awadhi, CEO of the Food Safety Department at DM.  
He added that the average was set after UAE was compared to other countries with similar environment and climate.  
The municipality recently introduced a smart inspection system that will allow consumers to monitor their own food commodities and halal products. The new technology will guarantee the authenticity of goods and conformity to certification standards.  
During the announcement, Eng. Hussain Nasser Lootah, director general of Dubai Municipality said that the number of cases reported on food poisoning is lower than international standards due to the government's continuous surveillance on products.  
Al Awadhi said  investigations the municipality has conducted revealed that most of poisoning cases were domestic.  
"People had a clear lack of awareness on the correct way to store and prepare food. Wrong habits would result in foodborne illnesses," said Al Awadhi.  
The municipality has been carrying out awareness campaigns to prevent foodborne diseases. The latest campaign was through a stand at Mirdif City Center that addressed the public on the right food cooking and storage practices.  
"Improper food storage, preparation methods and even food purchasing methods were among the most common malpractices people fell into."  
"We had to educate the public on the right ways to prevent food contamination," said Al Awadhi. Sayed Essam Al Hashimi, head of Studies and Food Systems Section at DM, said that the civic body works closely with the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) to report poisoning cases.   If there was a suspected food outlet, inspections are carried out to investigate the possible causes of poisoning.  
Violators can face fines depending on the severity of the violation. Al Hashimi added that Person In-Charge (PIC) training, launched for five years in food outlets, has contributed to the low number of food poisoning cases.  
"Trainings in food outlets is important to ensure that practices are compatible with food safety requirements," said Al Hashimi. 
Ways to prevent food borne diseases
- Separate raw food from ready-eat food in refrigerator. Salads have to be stored in higher shelves, while raw food like meat and raw eggs must be stored on lower shelves to avoid transfer of bacteria.
- Use different utensils for cutting different types of food.
- After purchasing meat, do not keep it in room temperature for more than two hours.
- While purchasing, do not place raw food with vegetables to avoid disease transfer.
Food to handle with care
- Ready-to-eat food like sandwiches and pizza
- Cooked products like meat, fish or cheese
- Cooked products that are reheated and served
- Dairy based desserts
- Frozen food such as ice-cream.
 sherouk@khaleejtimes.com


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