SINGAPORE : Singapore households fare poorly when it
comes to kitchen hygiene, according to a survey.
Eighty-eight per cent of homes have a significant
presence of harmful bacteria that can cause food
poisoning.
Some 25 households participated in the week-long
Finish/Bosch Kitchen Hygiene Study.
Most of the households surveyed said they do not wash utensils and
dishes with hot water.
Meanwhile, only 44 per cent said they wash their hands after
handling raw meat.
All this is poor kitchen hygiene, as harmful bacteria such as
salmonella and E.coli can thrive.
However, about 80 per cent believe they are not likely to get food
poisoning.
Dr Wong Sin Yew, an infectious disease physician, said: "Many of
you are also aware that the practice of food hygiene is not optimal
but not all of you fall sick. We do get exposed to bacteria but we
do have an intact immune system and most of the time, our immune
system does handle it.
"But we really shouldn't push our luck. I think we should practise
good habits and make sure we reduce our risks."
According to the survey, one of the main culprits in the kitchen
which could cause cross-contamination is the kitchen sponge. What
is worrying is that 88 per cent of sponges tested were found to
contain E.coli and salmonella.
The common excuses for being sloppy about kitchen hygiene are
laziness and a lack of time.
Gary Teng, a participant, said: "Firstly in the preparation of
food, I think we are not so conscious of washing our hands when we
handle the food. And also washing the dishes after dinner, we do
not use hot water, and the kitchen towel that is used to wipe the
dishes and work top is the same."
Another respondent, Katherine Kang, said: "I am guilty of
over-using my sponge. That means I only throw my sponge away when I
realise it is visually ugly. That means they are flaking off,
rather than a systematic way of throwing them every two to three
weeks."
With 2,370 cases of acute diarrhoea reported each week in
Singapore, experts said it is time to keep the kitchen free of
germs.
- CNA/ms
