Providing food at community and charity events

When you're barbecuing, the biggest risk of food poisoning is from raw and undercooked meat. But following a few simple tips can keep your barbecued food safe and tasty:

• wash hands after touching raw meat and before handling other food or equipment
• check the centre of the food – meat isn’t necessarily cooked inside just because it looks charred on the outside, use a food thermometer to check the core temperature is 75°C
• make sure chicken, pork, burgers, sausages and kebabs are cooked all the way through
• if you don’t have a food thermometer check there is no pink meat, and juices
  run clear
• to help cook food thoroughly cook the meat indoors (in a pan, grill or oven), then finish it off on the barbecue for that chargrilled flavour
• even if people are waiting for food don’t reduce the cooking times, serving undercooked meat can give people food poisoning
• frozen food should be completely thawed before you start to cook it
• keep raw meat in sealed containers, separate from other foods. That way it won’t contaminate them with bacteria
• use separate plates and utensils for raw meat to avoid cross-contamination with ready-to-eat foods such as bread rolls and salads
• do not use a sauce or marinade for cooked food that’s had raw meat in it
• when the charcoal is glowing red with a powdery grey surface, it’s ready for you to start cooking
• keep food moving on the barbecue, so it cooks evenly

Many foods included in a buffet, such as cold meats and sandwich fillings, require chilling and should be left out of the fridge for the shortest time possible and for no more than four hours. After this time, any remaining food should be thrown away or put back in the fridge. If you put the food back in the fridge don’t let it stand around at room temperature when you serve it again. 

All foods which are to be held hot prior to serving must be kept above 63°C. These foods should be placed in appropriate equipment, for example a pre-heated bain-marie/hot cabinet, as soon as possible after reheating or cooking.

Once food has been cooked, if you want to re-heat it for an event it should be chilled as quickly as possible and refrigerated before being re-heated to 82°C . However this is not required of food that would be spoiled by reheating to this level. Remember food should only be reheated once.

You can serve homemade cakes at community events. They should be safe to eat as long as:

• the people who make them follow good food hygiene advice
• keep a note of the allergen ingredients
• make sure that cheesecake and any other cakes or desserts containing fresh cream are left out of the fridge for the shortest time possible
• when handling cakes use tongs or a cake slice
• store cakes in a clean, sealable container, away from raw foods, somewhere cool and dry
• children can take part in food preparation at charity and community events, but it is very important that they have adequate supervision and good hygiene practices are followed

It's safe to re-use glass jam jars to supply home-made jam or chutney as long as the jars are free from chips and cracks and are properly washed, and sterilised prior to each use. Well-fitting lids will also minimise any hygiene risks to the food in the jars.

• food should be transported in clean suitable containers
• any foods being transported should be kept out of the fridge for the shortest time possible
• for foods that need to be kept cool, use clean cool bags or boxes for transportation

When serving food it is not necessary for the food handler to wear gloves, it is a personal choice. They are not a substitute for good personal hygiene and can become contaminated with bacteria in much the same way as hands can, even when they are new, and should be kept clean and sanitised in the same way as bare hands. 

Gloves can be useful for covering or protecting damaged skin, or protecting hands from risk of developing skin conditions (such as dermatitis, which can be caused by prolonged food handling and wet work such as dish washing). When selecting gloves bear in mind that some people have an allergy to latex or develop one from regular contact. Alternative glove materials include nitrile, vinyl, rubber and plastic.