Food Safety in Hamilton, Ontario
The city of Hamilton in Ontario is governed by the bylaws created by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care. The bylaw focuses on mandatory food handler training, specifically food handlers who work in food establishments. With foodborne illness affecting more than four million people each year in Canada, it has become a must for food handlers to learn food safety and sanitation.But since food handling doesn’t end in the food facilities and establishment, we encourage anyone interested in learning Food Safety in Hamilton to sign up for our Hamilton First Aid training programs.
Hamilton First Aid programs
At Hamilton First Aid, we specialize in food safety and first aid training courses. Food safety is one of our more popular programs, with two levels available to prospective trainees. If you need training and certification for food safety and sanitation, you have the option on enrolling in a (1) classroom course or a (2) self-study course. Classroom courses are regular training programs set in classrooms and laboratories, with trainers teaching students the curriculum.
The self-study route is a little different – with the student taking charge of his or her entire training period. We allow students who choose to self-study to buy the workbooks separately and learn the material on their own time. Students who take the self-study route usually have work during the day or are still in school and do not have time to take regular training classes.
Level 1 Food Safety
The first level of food safety training is a basic course meant to introduce concepts of food safety and sanitation to trainees. This level is the minimum requirement by the Ontario bylaws for food handler training, and is open to anyone interested in learning food safety. Basic concepts such as foodborne illness, microbiology, personal hygiene, and infection control.
This level runs for eight hours over a single day.
Level 2 Food Safety
The second level of food safety training is an advanced course that targets food handlers who work in managerial or supervisory positions. However, the level is open to anyone with a level one training certificate. The curriculum of this advanced level is focused on the need-to-know about running a food facility or establishment – such as personnel training and workflow in the facility.
This level runs for 16 hours over two days.
The importance of infection control
The words infection control are pretty common in health care facilities such as hospitals but are rarely flung around in food establishments. However, the truth is that infection control plays a very big role in establishments and facilities that handle food. When food service workers do not practice proper hand hygiene or wear protective gear, they increase the risk of food becoming contaminated with bacteria and other dangerous microorganisms.
The Norovirus is actually responsible for 58 percent of foodborne illness cases. The rest of the list made up of bacteria such as Clostridium perfringens, Campylobacter spp., non-typhoidal Salmonella, and Staphylococus aureus.
If you need food safety and sanitation training, visit the Hamilton First Aid website and take a look at all our available classes.