These snacks which are technically called “ready to eat
foods” have actually become part of the regular diets of many particularly the
rural and local dwellers. In my quest to unravel the rampant cases of food
poisonings and health hazards, I have come to realise that many of the issues
are due to these kinds of food with less cases associated with homemade foods.
How To Avoid Food Poisoning Eating At Eateries/Restaurants
Just some few days ago, I and my big brother visited
somewhere in Ipaja (Lagos) in his car, as we both looked by our right while in
the slow moving traffic, we saw a road side Yam and Akara (fried bean cake)
seller. Just in the traffic, a faulty trailer was in front of us, which was
producing some very thick, dark and dangerous carbon monoxide and had most of
the gas directly deposited on the displayed foods. This happens virtually every
time as the seller is just by the very busy road.
We all are aware of the state of our trucks, trailer, cars
and even the Lagos commercial buses, popularly called “Danfo” as regards the
quality of their exhausts. What of the dust deposit on some of these snacks?
Only a few of the sellers cover the foods with a transparent nylon to provide
some forms of shield. The deposits are seriously causing health hazards
unknowing to millions of people on daily basis.
Many of the women and men who sell these ready to made snack
wear dirty aprons, rub their hands over it, use their hand to pick charcoals,
clean up for their children particularly the women and eventually used these
contaminated hands to touch and reposition the roasted corns or plantains to be
package for customers. A colleague of mine recently had severe diarrhoea and he
was quick to identify the source; a road side snack.
These roadside food outlets are making many consumers
especially children and women vulnerable to fatal diseases such as cholera,
typhoid and gastroenteritis. The utensils and containers used in making these
road sides ready to make snacks are usually not very clean. For me, I love to
eat these snacks but the thought of all these unhygienic handling deter me from
enjoying them.
Well, if you must consume these snacks, chose to buy from
sellers you can trust as regards how they handle the issue of hygiene in their
production or cooking process.
Source
FoodsNg
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