MEAT MANAGEMENT

CATERERS have less legislation to comply with than abattoir owners. That said, regulations on using and storing meat in the catering industry can be onerous and shrouded in jargon, despite the present Government's drive toward deregulation.

By obeying simple principles, risks can be reduced. Geoffrey Binks, head of Quality Assurance Services at the Meat and Livestock Commission (MLC) offers five principles for safe handling:

lStrict standards of general and personal hygiene must be obeyed.

lThe chill chain must be maintained throughout storage, processing, cooking and cooling, and temperatures must be monitored.

lFollow the "process control" technique. This includes stock rotation, so the first in is the first out.

lThe structure of the food premises must be maintained in good order.

lEnsure all staff receive training appropriate to their job.

The following should act as useful guidelines at all stages of dealing with meat.

DELIVERY

lAlways use a regular and accredited supplier. The National Association of Catering Butchers regularly publishes a list of its members who have been inspected by the MLC's quality assurance inspectors.

lAll chilled meats should be deliveredat or below 5ºC. Pre-packed meat must have a Use By date and frozen meatmust display a Best Before date. Allproducts should be used in rotation. As soon as possible after delivery, meat should be put into a storage cabinet capable of maintaining the appropriate temperature.

STORAGE

l Meat should be stored at its appropriate temperature, usually between 1ºCand 5ºC.

lRaw meat should be stored separately from cooked meats or meat products.

lChilled meat must be used by the Use By date unless written permission touse it later has been received from the supplier.

lTemperatures of chillers or freezers should be measured regularly.

lChilled cooked meat must generally be stored below 8ºC, but if it has been prepared for consumption without further cooking or reheating the maximumtemperature becomes 5ºC. Smokedor cured meat which has been sliced or cut must also generallybe kept below 5ºC. If stored hot, these types of meatmust be kept at not lessthan 63ºC.

PREPARATIOn

l Follow recommended storage temperature during preparation.

lA joint of meat should be no larger than 2.5kg for safe cooking; larger joints should be divided into smaller portions.

lUtensils and chopping boards should be colour-coded to separate fish, vegetables, raw meat and cooked meat.

lAll frozen meats should be thawed under refrigerated conditions.

COOKING

lMeat should reach a minimum core temperature of 70ºC for at least two minutes. Similarly, poultry should reach a core temperature of at least 75ºC.

l If a joint is not to be used immediately, it should be cooled to below 5ºC as quickly as possible.

SERVICE

l Hot meat should be served above 63ºC.

lCold meat should be held at a maximum of 5ºC. n