Germany highlights importance of kitchen hygiene

People often underestimate the importance of kitchen hygiene in preventing foodborne illness, according to a German agency.

Every year, more than 100,000 illnesses are reported in Germany that may have been caused by bacteria, viruses, or parasites in food. In 2023, the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL) and the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) received 190 reports of foodborne outbreaks that caused 2,248 illnesses, 283 hospitalizations, and 13 deaths.

In surveys on health risks, relatively few people mention kitchen hygiene and the associated illnesses as a serious problem. In the latest German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) consumer monitor, only 17 percent of respondents said they were concerned about it.

The level of concern about microplastics is 68 percent and residues of plant protection products in food is 52 percent, both significantly higher.

“Most people assume that they themselves do not make mistakes in their own kitchen, but that the mistakes are produced by others,” said hygiene expert Dr. Heidi Wichmann-Schauer in an episode of “Risko” — the German language science podcast from the BfR.

Cross contamination risk
Special care should be taken with food of animal origin such as raw meat or fish, as well as raw milk or eggs. Campylobacter is particularly common, as is Salmonella and certain E. coli.

People from vulnerable groups should not eat such foods raw, said Wichmann-Schauer.

“Especially very young children, very old people, people whose body´s defenses are weakened by previous illness or pregnant women. If a product is heated to at least 70 degrees C (158 degrees F) uniformly throughout for at least two minutes, then we can assume that most existing pathogens have been killed.”

Pathogens can also be transferred to kitchen utensils, worktops and hands when preparing food. This means that bacteria can then be transferred from the raw steak into the salad, for example, and eating it can cause illness. To prevent cross contamination, cleanliness in the kitchen and the correct handling of food is important.

“So always wash your hands in between, use different knives and chopping boards and wash all utensils thoroughly in between,” said Wichmann-Schauer.

Trade show focus
Kitchen hygiene was also the focus of the BfR’s stand at Grüne Woche (Green Week), a trade fair for the agricultural and food industry from Jan. 17 to 26 in Berlin.

“Many people are not even aware that a lack of kitchen hygiene can be a real health risk, as our surveys show time and again. We want to show our guests how this risk can be significantly minimized by taking simple measures,” said Professor Andreas Hensel, BfR president.

BfR invited children to explore the world of food germs. The exhibition stand used content from BfR’s recently published children’s book in German (Luis’ and Maya’s Adventure in the shrinking lab: Looking for Clues in the Kitchen).

In the “error refrigerator” visitors tried out how to store food in the right way. They were able to shrink themselves to the size of bacteria. A germ gallery provided information on various food germs, and visitors tested their knowledge on a quiz wheel.

TV chef Tino Schmidt prepared snacks and presented the correct way to handle food in the home kitchen, with BfR scientists.

(To sign up for a free subscription to Food Safety News, click here.) 

Source: https://www.foodsafetynews.com/2025/01/germany-highlights-importance-of-kitchen-hygiene/