Studying Edmonton Food Safety Certification
Studying food safety is a common requirement for food service workers in Canada. Different provinces require food service workers to get food safety certificates through public health acts that regulate food safety. In Edmonton, food service workers are governed by the Alberta Public Health Act on Food Regulation.
Section 31 of that act requires a number of employees in a food establishment to have Edmonton Food Safety Certification training and certification. However, not all employee and not all food establishments need to follow this provincial public health act.
- At least one supervisor trained and certified in food safety has to be present when there are more than 5 employees working in the establishment during a shift
- At least one employee (supervisory or a regular staff member) trained and certified in food safety has to present when there are less than six employees working in the establishment during a shift
- Bed and breakfasts
- Market stalls
- Temporary food stalls (e.g. for events)
- Social facilities (e.g. daycare) with less than 10 clients
- Stores that sell pre-packaged food (no direct food handling is done)
Why learning food safety should be important to you
Something that greatly influences our health is food. You take it into you body in order to gain nutrients and other substances for your systems to function properly. However, if food is contaminated with dangerous microorganisms and similar substances, it can cause the spread of disease – the complete opposite of what you want. Foodborne diseases are usually self-limiting – meaning they last for a few days and go away on their own – but some have very severe symptoms that need medical management.
Symptoms such as diarrhea are very dangerous to the very young and very old members of the population – because they are at a greater risk for dehydration. In healthy adults and older children, dehydration can be managed at home with the proper intake of fluids. However, if the person becomes severely dehydrated, he/she might have to be taken to the hospital to receive fluid resuscitation management.
Getting started: Pathogens and Chemicals
Pathogens like E. coli and Salmonella are common causes of foodborne illness. They are usually transferred from an infected person, to the food, to the consumer. This is all because of a lack of food safety. Infection control is one of the most important topics we include in the curriculum. Hand washing, by far, is the most effective way to prevent the spread of infectious microorganisms when done before and after handling/serving/packaging food.
Chemicals are another cause of foodborne illness, specifically food poisoning. Pesticides, chemicals that are sprayed on food to kill insects and vermin, can be very dangerous to humans if not cleaned off of produce. If you buy fresh produce from a market, it may contain harmful pesticides that can cause foodborne illness. This is why sanitation is so important prior to and after food handling.