A recent food poisoning at a school in Gombak robbed the lives of 2 victims – a 17-year-old boy and a 9-month-old baby. The food served – fried bee hoon and the eggs have changed in color and taste.
Malaysian celebrity chef, Chef Wan was well aware of the incident and in a recent interview, the chef expressed his concerns about how some local food vendors are lacking in the knowledge of handling food.
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“Everyone wants to do business but not everyone wants to invest”
In the interview with Maskulin, Chef Wan pointed out that many Malaysian food vendors are lacking in fundamental knowledge about food handling and preparation, which includes food storage.
“They don’t know the ideal temperature for food storage. Sometimes, they just leave it out there under room temperature after cleaning poultry and seafood.”
Chef Wan also highlighted that with the scorching weather in Malaysia, the high temperature has become an ideal place for the bacteria to breed.
“For instance, if you cover hot food immediately, and when the food is exposed to steam, it’s the perfect place for bacteria to breed. Fried rice, fried noodles or anything at all.”
The celebrity chef also highlighted that in the UK and the US, not everyone is allowed to sell food around if they have not attended the relevant training. Back here, Chef Wan said that everyone wants to get involved in the food business but unfortunately, the food handling knowledge is lacking.
Another example would be an investment in a proper fridge.
“You scramble everything in one place and when all space is used up, there’s no air circulation. Without air circulation, the temperature is not cold enough and that’s how viruses and bacteria spread,” Chef Wan explained.
He then shared his take on the food business in Malaysia – everyone should be sent to training before starting a business.
“I think they should be sent to food handling and sanitation before starting a food business. They’re dealing with the public.”
If you’re handling food to cater to customers, you have a heavy responsibility on your shoulders. It’s not just about food quality but also the safety of the consumers.
