Hazards

The Macquarie Dictionary defines a hazard as 'a potential source of harm.'

People who work in the food industry have identified five major hazards.

They are:

1. Manual handling

Any activity requiring a person to use force to lift, lower, push, pull, carry or otherwise move or restrain an object.

Manual handling tasks include:

lifting heavy objects
repetitive or forceful movements
work carried out in awkward postures.

Injuries may happen as a result of a 'one-off' event, but more often they are the result of stress and strain over a long period of time.

2. The work environment

The characteristics of the area where you work.

Elements include:

floors and other surfaces
noise
lighting
temperature
ventilation
accessibility, and
housekeeping.

The most common causes of injury arising from the work environment in the food industry are slips, trips and falls, and heat stress.

3. Plant

The term 'plant' refers to both powered and non-powered equipment. Caterers, chefs and kitchen staff use many items (slicers, mincers, knives, mixers, etc) which have the potential to cause injury.

You should consider the following issues:

guarding moving parts
the power source (e.g. electricity)
the risk of fire or explosion
noise
vibration
radiation
stability (how well plant is mounted or secured)
the use of pressure vessels (e.g. espresso machines).

4. Heat

Burns are very common in the catering industry. Many operations involve contact with hot food, equipment, surfaces and liquids.

Heat is a risk when:

cooking food
taking food from ovens, bain maries etc
making beverages using hot equipment or steam.

5. Electricity

Electrical equipment is widely used in the food industry. Because of frequent use and cleaning, its electrical safety may be compromised, exposing workers to the risk of shock, burns or fatal injury.

Electrical accidents are usually caused by:

using faulty equipment
working with damaged leads
unsafe work practices, or
a combination of the above.

Other hazards include: