Dust and Food Safety: Ghanaians must be careful where they buy food

Mr Douglas Tagoe, an Environmental Health Consultant, has called on food vendors to protect their food from dust or other intrusions. He also recommended that cutlery, plates, saucepans must be well protected especially during this dry weather to prevent potential causes of respiratory and cardiovascular problems. Mr Tagoe told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that if people were conscious of what dust could do to food and their health, they would be mindful of where they buy. He said recent climate change was a big problem around the world and the harmattan in season was a great threat to Ghana's food industry and safety. He stated that the Harmattan had brought in its wake dryness, adding that when things dry, they turn to powder faster hence the rise in dust, which also contributes to catarrh. Dust, he reiterated, contains certain microbes, which when settled on food makes it unhealthy for consumption. 'So, you have prepared your food nicely but due to the long hours of exposure, it becomes cold , which allows germs to spore-form. When the germs settle on the food and it is placed on fire, then they will be compressing and forming spores and when the food becomes cold, they start multiplying,' he explained. Mr Tagoe said there was no healthy dust therefore dryness and dusty weather was a threat to good food management wherever it is. The Environmental Health Consultant advised restaurant operators and street food vendors to ensure that there were curtains or glass sieves to stop dust from entering food wholly. He also stated that tables used by consumers for eating were placed away from windows to prevent direct contact with dust. Mr Tagoe urged Ghanaians to go back to handwashing with soap under running water and the use of sanitizer before eating. He said the public were slugging back on handwashing and the use of sanitizers because they think COVID-19 was no more but needed to go back to the practice, more than ever. 'Transportation is part of that problem. They should protect their food as much as possible and even the table they serve on,' he added. He said all kinds of food needed protection whether oranges, bananas, roasted plantain, groundnuts among others because they are consumed directly alongside the dust without washing. Mr Tagoe urged the public not to buy food in dusty areas due to contamination. Source: Ghana News Agency