Retailers trained to promote food safety

By JAMES GUMUNO
BUSINESShouses and fast-food retailers in Enga received training on quality food preparation and food safety last week as part of an initiative by the Enga Health Authority to improve food quality and safety.
The week-long training was a first of its kind in the Highlands region where a provincial health authority has taken a strong stand on food safety.
Public health director Dr Betty Etami Koka said the aim of the course was to reduce lifestyle diseases.
According to Dr Koka, the course covered food handling, food safety and control, infrastructure of the food premises, cleanliness and sanitation, food-borne diseases, forms of licences, legal matters on food infection, transportation and delivery of prepared food, and refrigerated food.
Dr Koka said a lot of people who go to the hospital and health centres with complaints of stomachaches, nausea and diarrhoea do so after eating food from the fast food-outlets.
She said that training on food safety has been ignored in the past.
“We see people preparing food in shops and along the roadsides and decided to educate them,” she said.
Dr Koka said that the simple hygiene rules on safe handling and preparation of food was lacking among food handlers working in fast-food business around the country.
She said people needed to consume safe healthy food to stay healthy and prevent lifestyle diseases.
The course was part of EPHA’s strategy to implement the government’s Healthy Island concept by promoting healthy homes, healthy schools, healthy shops, health markets, healthy restaurants and fast food-outlets among others.
Dr Koka warned that when food was not properly prepared and eaten it could lead to food poisoning.
She said long-term illnesses like diabetes, obesity and heart problems were also relate to poor food preparation.