Food-Borne Illness Prevention Flashcards
6 cards from real Ontario Food Handler Certificate practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Food-Borne Illness Prevention flashcards as text
Which of the following best describes a food-borne infection?
Answer: Illness caused by eating food containing living pathogens that multiply in the body
A food-borne infection occurs when living pathogens in food are ingested and multiply within the body, causing illness. Salmonella infection is a classic example.
What is the primary reason that ground meat poses a higher food safety risk than whole muscle cuts?
Answer: Grinding distributes surface bacteria throughout the meat
Surface bacteria on whole cuts are killed during cooking. Grinding mixes these bacteria throughout the meat, requiring the entire portion to reach safe internal temperatures.
Campylobacter jejuni infection is primarily associated with which food source?
Answer: Raw or undercooked poultry
Campylobacter jejuni is one of the most common causes of bacterial gastroenteritis and is primarily associated with raw or undercooked poultry, unpasteurized milk, and contaminated water.
How does Staphylococcus aureus typically contaminate food?
Answer: Through food handlers touching food with bare hands
S. aureus is commonly found on human skin, in nasal passages, and in infected cuts. It is transferred to food through bare-hand contact, where it can produce heat-stable toxins.
What makes the toxin produced by Staphylococcus aureus particularly dangerous?
Answer: It is heat-stable and not destroyed by normal cooking
The enterotoxin produced by S. aureus is heat-stable, meaning once it is produced in food, normal cooking temperatures will not destroy it. Prevention focuses on keeping the bacteria from growing in food.
According to Ontario regulations, what is the maximum time allowed to cool cooked food from 60°C to 4°C?
Answer: 6 hours total (60°C to 20°C in 2 hours, then 20°C to 4°C in 4 hours)
Ontario's two-stage cooling rule requires food to be cooled from 60°C to 20°C within 2 hours, and then from 20°C to 4°C within the next 4 hours, for a total of 6 hours maximum.