The cross-contamination I keep seeing at the back table

I was helping out at a friend's shop in Omaha last Saturday and watched three people in a row grab the same knife to trim fat off a brisket after using it on raw chicken. They just wiped it on a towel and kept going. That's how you get people sick. I stopped the fourth guy and showed him how to rinse and sanitize between proteins. Has anyone else noticed this getting worse since the new folks started?

2 comments

2 Comments

richardrodriguez14d ago

Had a buddy who runs a BBQ joint in Lincoln tell me about the exact same thing happening with a new kid on the crew. The kid thought wiping the blade on his apron was good enough until three customers ended up sick with salmonella. Took a full health department visit before they finally made a strict color-coded knife system stick.

olivias8814d ago

Did the fourth guy actually listen to you when you showed him the right way? Because I had a similar thing happen at a place I used to eat at in Lincoln where the line cook swore wiping the knife on his jeans was fine until the health inspector showed up. And yeah @richardrodriguez, that color coded system is a lifesaver but it only works if people actually follow it, not just hang the knives on the wall for show. I swear some of these new folks treat cross contamination like it's a suggestion.