Keeping super bugs out oft he kitchen

Antibiotics misuse on industrial farms can breed dangerous super bugs. The raw meat found on supermarket shelves routinely carries resistant bacteria strains that can end up in human bodies. Super bugs pose an especially serious risk to the sick and the weak.

The larger a piece of meat, the more important it is to make sure it is properly defrosted, so that the temperature necessary to kill bacteria is reached when the meat is cooked. Frozen food should ideally be defrosted in the refrigerator, which helps prevent bacteria from multiplying. The drain water should not come into contact with other foodstuffs.

According to experts, chopping boards should be made of glass. Germs easily collect and multiply in the small incisions left by chopping knives on boards made of plastic or wood.

Use separate kitchen utensils for raw meat and raw vegetables and salad. Germs are killed in the process of cooking so uncooked food can spread super bugs. Even cooked food should not come into contact with kitchen utensils used to prepare raw meat.

Most dangerous pathogens are killed by temperatures of 70 degrees Celsius. It is therefore essential to cook raw meat properly. Germs are not necessarily killed in the process of microwave cooking.

Hands must be washed with soap and hot water before and after preparing food. Hands should also be washed immediately after handling raw meat, poultry, fish and eggs.

Using disposable gloves while handling raw meat is one way of ensuring that pathogens do not enter the body via cuts or grazes.

Kitchen utensils and surfaces (including the sink!) must be cleaned with hot water and cleaning products after use. If utensils used to prepare raw animal products are stacked in the dishwasher, they need to be cleaned at a temperature of at least 60 degrees Celsius. There is no need for disinfectants in the home, according to hygiene experts.

Hands and kitchenware should not be wiped with the same drying-up cloths. These need to be washed at least once a week at a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius. Germs easily multiply in warm, moist kitchen sponges so these should be replaced or thoroughly cleaned at least once a week.

Following these basic hygiene tips will help protect against super bugs such as MRSA and ESBL and also help keep your kitchen free of campylobacter and salmonella, which can cause severe diarrhoea.