food storage
Types of food storage:-
1. Dry food storage.
2. Food cryopreservation.
3. Frozen food storage.
Basic rules of storage
Warehouses, refrigerators, freezers:-
• The temperature and humidity inside the storage warehouses must be monitored by filling in the relevant forms twice a day for each type of food.
• The lighting must be good inside the storage tanks.
• The store must be spacious, as the spacious places allow the transfer or change of food places freely, which reduces the chances of contamination, and makes cleaning the storage place easily and freely.
• Emphasis must be placed on the necessity of turning the foodstuffs and arranging them in the correct manner so that the materials that were received first are present in the forefront of use, and that the foodstuffs that were recently received should be placed inside and according to their expiry date, there is a basic rule for storage called (FIFO) the materials that were stored First in First out.
• The storage space must be cleaned, arranged and disinfected, floors, walls, shelves, and food transport carts, and to ensure that waste is not collected in food storage places.
• The place of storage must be arranged in a good way so that there is sufficient space in the place of storage and not to be stacked to allow good ventilation between the food items.
• It must be ensured that no contaminated materials are stored or used empty bags that may be contaminated with some insects should be placed in the storage areas.
• It is necessary to reasonably reduce the food stock and keep it clean, “cold” and covered. A reasonable reduction in the stored quantities reduces the storage period and the risk of spoilage, and storage loses food from its nutritional value and quality, but sometimes there is a need for storage. • The following foodstuffs should be stored separately in a separate refrigerator:
• Milk and dairy products. 2) Red meat. 3) fish and seafood. 4) Meat of poultry and birds. 5) fruits. 6) vegetables 7) sweets 8) eggs.
• Cooked foodstuffs should not be stored with uncooked raw foodstuffs to prevent cross-contamination
• A protocol should be developed to receive foodstuffs from the storage place, to reduce the number of times entering the storage place.
• The walls, floor and ceiling of warehouses must be free of cracks that allow insects to reach and spin their cocoons inside them, or cockroaches and other insects to hide in them because they are all carriers of disease-causing germs.
• Insects that infect foodstuffs must be resisted as soon as the infection appears and the use of pesticides that are suitable for them and do not harm foodstuffs or make them unsuitable for use.
• Food items stored in warehouses or refrigerators should be inspected daily and damaged items should be removed.
• The water cooler should not be placed inside the storage tanks. Dry foodstuff storage: Dry foodstuffs: pulses and dry grains, flour, pasta, vermicelli, sugar, milk and dried juice, canned food, juice packages, high temperature milk (long-life) and packaged dried fruits.
• There must be a thermometer inside the warehouse of dry foodstuffs, and the temperature inside the warehouse is recorded twice a day and documented in special forms according to Form No. (3) page (40), provided that the temperature inside the warehouse ranges from 10-21º C (°C). And the humidity should not be more than (50-60%).
• Dry foodstuffs should not be placed directly on the floor, but should be placed in shelves not less than 15 cm high from the floor and far from the walls.
• Placing dry foodstuffs in suitable clean, unbreakable, tightly closed containers, with a sticker to indicate the quality of the food, and that the measures or ladles are suitable and unbreakable, and that these measures and ladles should not be left inside the containers for storing foodstuffs.
• Place the storage shelves away from heating, sanitary installations, and away from refrigeration devices. Food storage by refrigeration (-17.8 to 4.4) ºC (°C):-
• You must ensure that the refrigerator door is closed tightly and correctly.
• You must check the temperature of the refrigerators twice a day and write that down
• Food items in the refrigerator should be arranged according to their proximity or distance from the refrigerator door.
• When storing vegetables and fruits in the refrigerator, you must remove the leaves and remove the place of their flower, as a lot of dust, dust and pesticide residues accumulate in the lint of flowers and leaves.
• Food should not be placed in the refrigerator near lighting areas.
• Food must not be stacked inside refrigerators to leave room for ventilation between food items.
• Raw, uncooked foodstuffs should be placed on the lower shelves, and foods ready for consumption on the upper shelves.
• To avoid contamination of foodstuffs refrigerated in the refrigerator, they must be tightly wrapped, and the packaging of foodstuffs stored in the refrigerator should be dry, not wet with water or ice, in order to avoid cross-contamination between foodstuffs refrigerated in the refrigerator.
• Food must not be placed directly on the floor of the refrigerator, but must be placed on shelves not less than 15 cm high from the floor, and away from the walls.
• You must inspect all food stored in the refrigerator and dispose of damaged food.
• Leafy vegetables should be washed before storing.
• When storing eggs, eggs must be placed so that the egg head is down and its base is up, and eggs must be cleaned if there is dirt stuck on it before placing it in the refrigerator.
• With regard to storing bread, some types of bread, such as French bread, are not recommended to be stored in refrigerators because that changes its specifications and quality. Store food by freezing (below -17.8ºC).
• The temperature of the freezers must be checked twice a day, and this should be recorded in special forms The fridge freezer shall be equipped with a thermometer that shows its temperature, provided that it is less than -17.8 ºC (°C).
• Ensure that foodstuffs are not re-frozen, and this is done by taking out the quantities to be consumed only.
• Frozen foodstuffs should not be placed on the freezer floor, but should be placed on shelves that are at least 15 cm above the floor.
• Meat, poultry and fish should not be washed before storing.
• Food must be packaged tightly and emptied from the air as much as possible, especially meat, in order to avoid freezing burns.
• Freezing burns only cause the surface layer of the meat to dry out due to direct exposure of the meat to cold air. It is possible to remove this layer before or after cooking. In the event of a power outage in the refrigerator.
• The refrigerator door should be left closed to keep the cool air inside.
• The full freezer keeps the freezing temperature for two days, and the half-full one stays for one day, but if it is not full, it is better to collect the foodstuffs together so that each part benefits from the coldness of the other parts.
• If the power outage continues, quantities of ice must be placed over perishable foods such as meat, chicken and fish.
• If some foods have melted, this means that they must be cooked.