First – Constructional Health Requirements:

Constructional health requirements for restaurants and hotels necessitate the provision of designated spaces for receiving, preparing, and arranging food, with the kitchen divided into separate sections such as the butchery area, the fish market, the cooking area, and the dishwashing area, to ensure food safety and prevent contamination. These sections must be arranged in a logical sequence in line with the workflow, taking into account the distances between sections to reduce food safety risks. Cold sections must also be equipped with air conditioning to maintain an appropriate temperature, and devices and equipment must be distributed appropriately to provide a comfortable working environment.

Second – Health Requirements for Tools and Equipment:

Health requirements for tools and equipment in restaurants and hotels dictate that all tools and surfaces that come into contact with food must be cleaned and disinfected after each use, and stored in places that protect them from contamination.

Teflon cutting boards should be used instead of wooden boards, as wooden boards retain moisture and provide a suitable environment for the growth of bacteria. A universal color code has been developed for cutting boards to avoid cross-contamination between different types of food, with a specific color assigned to each type.

Knives should also be categorized according to the same color codes, and all tools should be made of materials that do not interact with food and are easy to clean. It is forbidden to wash food in sinks to avoid contamination, and raw materials should be separated from preparation areas.

Third – Control and Monitoring Points in the Kitchen:

These aim to provide a safe environment for preparing and arranging food and include the following:

1. Good Lighting: The preparation area should be well-lit to facilitate the inspection of food and the detection of impurities.
2. Separation of Areas: It is essential to separate preparation and cooking areas to avoid contamination.
3. Monitoring Workers: Individuals handling food should be monitored to reduce the risk of contamination resulting from coughing or sneezing.
4. Handling Sensitive Ingredients: Products such as fruits, vegetables, and frozen desserts should be handled with caution to avoid contamination.
5. Paying Attention to the Type of Food: Workers must consider the type of food before preparation, as food varies between those prepared on-site and those pre-prepared, which are less susceptible to contamination and quick to prepare but may be more expensive and lower in quality.

These points help reduce the risk of contamination and food poisoning, ensuring food safety.

Fourth – Dismantling Frozen Products:

This is one of the important precautionary measures in restaurants and hotels to avoid food contamination. The process takes place in the butchery and fish departments, where products are emptied from their packaging in an open environment, increasing the risk of bacterial growth, especially when meat is exposed to dangerous temperatures.

Freezing food prevents the growth of microbes but does not kill them, and while the cooking process may kill bacteria, any resulting toxins remain a danger.