Keutamaan Pemberian Makanan Berkhasiat di Kantin Sekolah

BEBERAPA kejadian kes keracunan makanan membabitkan pelajar di beberapa sekolah di negara ini, mendapat pelbagai reaksi daripada pelbagai peringkat masyarakat.

Kes terbaru membabitkan keracunan makanan pelajar di dua sekolah berasingan di Terengganu yang menyebabkan mereka terpaksa dirawat kerana pening dan muntah selepas memakan makanan yang dibeli di kantin sekolah. Kes sebegini sepatutnya dianggap serius oleh semua pihak dan perlu ditangani segera kerana ia membabitkan kesihatan, malah nyawa pelajar.

Jika diteliti, faktor kecuaian manusia di samping proses penyediaan yang tidak mengikut spesifikasi yang ditetapkan adalah punca kejadian.Berdasarkan banyak kes keracunan yang disiar di media, ada sesetengah pengusaha kantin gagal menyediakan makanan bersih dan berkhasiat kerana terlalu mementingkan keuntungan. Malah, ada sesetengah pekerja di kantin bersikap sambil lewa apabila berhadapan dengan aspek kebersihan makanan.Pada masa sama, ada juga peniaga mengambil kesempatan menjual makanan dan minuman ringan yang sepatutnya tidak dijual kepada pelajar.

Kandungan makanan ringan yang tidak berkhasiat dan mempunyai kesan sampingan terhadap kesihatan wajar dielakkan daripada menjadi makanan pelajar dikantin.

Saya ingin mengesyorkan supaya ibu bapa, guru dan pihak berkuasa supaya turut bersama-sama memastikan pelajar mendapat makanan berkhasiat.
Pemantauan terhadap kebersihan dan makanan yang dijual wajar dilaksanakan secara berkala.

Hal ini penting bagi mengelakkan berlaku kecuaian dalam proses penyediaan makanan, perbincangan mengenai menu yang bersesuaian, juga wajar dilaksanakan di kalangan pengusaha dan pihak sekolah.

Pengusaha pula perlu menyediakan satu piawaian bagi penyediaan makanan.Elakkan daripada menjual makanan dan minuman ringan di kantin, sebaliknya tingkatkan jumlah makanan yang berkhasiat yang boleh membantu tumbesaran pelajar seperti buah-buahan dan sayuran.

Sekiranya memerlukan khidmat nasihat, terutama dalam penyediaan makanan berkhasiat, pengusaha boleh mendapatkannya melalui Pegawai Kesihatan atau Pegawai Dietetik/Pakar Pemakanan yang terdapat hospital atau Pejabat Kesihatan di seluruh Malaysia. Sekiranya amalan pemakanan sihat dan berkhasiat ini dapat dilaksanakan di sekolah, ia dapat mengelak berulang lagi masalah keracunan makanan. Malah, ia satu pendidikan kepada pelajar untuk memilih makanan berkualiti untuk kesihatan mereka.

HACCP plans and operating procedures are adaptable to any food production, processing, or distribution activity. The food industry began realizing a number of years ago that the lack of proper food-handling procedures could lead to very drastic situations concerning food-borne microorganisms, toxic chemicals, and physical contaminants. The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that we in the United States experience between 4 to 7 million cases of food-borne illness resulting in 5,000 deaths and $3 billion to $6 billion in costs annually. The U.S. food distribution and marketing system is a potential source for these causative agents.

Federal, state, and local food regulatory agencies, along with other food educational and organizational groups, are working to implement the HACCP Food Safety Program in the entire food chain ? from producers and growers to processors, and on to the marketing and distribution channels.

The operating principles of HACCP systems are applicable to any of the food chain activities and to any size of business. The critical areas within supermarkets and other food sales and marketing areas that have a potential to cause consumer harm are essentially the same whether the operation is a large, multifunctional store or a small mom-and-pop grocery and/or deli.

The entire concept of the HACCP program is to provide the consumer with a safe consumable product. The responsibility for producing and marketing these safe products rests with the food industry. Workers in retail food establishments must understand the hazards that are present and the effects these hazards might have on anyone consuming your products.
People in the United States do not go to the supermarket with any fear concerning the safety of the food that they purchase and take home. The majority of food-borne illnesses related to retail food operations are not created in the food store. They are created at home or in a restaurant.

Nevertheless, because of the large complex distribution system that we use to deliver our food from the supplier to the consumer, any situation that arises concerning the safety of the food product can result in literally hundreds of people becoming ill. The Critical Control Points (CCP) can range from the bacteria spread on the knife or slicer in the meat department to an improper chemical sanitizer used in the deli to a light bulb that inadvertently falls into the mixer in the bakery.

The HACCP program is designed so that we are aware of the Critical Control Points that we have within our establishment, and that we ensure that these critical factors are monitored in such a way as to produce a safe food supply.

HACCP.........

Americans have become increasingly concerned about food safety. Incidences of food-borne illness are receiving more attention as consumers have become more aware of new pathogens that threaten all of us.

The Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points system (HACCP) was developed to focus specifically on food safety. A major focus of the new HACCP system is ?from farm to table.? In short, everyone is responsible for safe food products.

The primary factor in the implementation of HACCP is a shift toward reliance on systems rather than individual defect. Taking a systems approach involves looking at all parts of the food handling and preparation process, step by logical step. It is a preventive maintenance plan rather than a fix-it-when-it-breaks attitude.

HACCP is a concept as well as a method of operation. When it comes to pathogens, ?sight, smell, and taste? just do not get it done. We must have control over the process, the raw materials, the environment, and the people, beginning as early in the food production system as possible. A very important component of the HACCP system is the change between past and future regulatory oversight. Having a HACCP plan will:

1) Improve your operation from the regulatory standpoint and provide for the safety of your food products.

2) Reduce the chance for food-borne illness.

3) Identify and document where corrections need to be made.

4) Have you thoroughly review your operation specifically for food safety and place controls on those areas of concern.