Purpose: To conduct a survey of the hygiene and handling practices adopted in establishments where Ready-to-Eat meat products are sliced.
Methods: A questionnaire was developed based on Brazilian legislation related to SSOP and GMP, validated and applied in 10 randomly selected supermarkets in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. Questions addressed mainly hygiene practices during food handling and slicing, personal and environmental hygiene, and documentation.
Results: Eighty percent of the evaluated supermarkets followed the SSOP recommended by the Brazilian legislation, and had a trained employee responsible for the adoption of GMP in the slicing sector. However, the GMP manual was not available for consultation in 30% of the establishments. Also, in 30% of the establishments, slicers were not cleaned with water and detergent. In 40% of establishments, the cleaning was performed only once per day, at the end of the day, while in 60% the machines were cleaned at every shift change, usually twice a day. Only 40% documented the frequency of cleaning and used sanitizers for disinfection of slicers. Seventy percent alcohol was the most common sanitizer. Only 40% of the employees sanitized their hands before entering the slicing sector. In 20%, the temperature of refrigerators did not follow the regulations (-4°C to 4°C).
Significance: This survey contributed with bits of information on hygiene practices adopted in the Ready-to-Eat meat products slicing sectors in some Brazilian supermarkets, contributing with data for proper assessment of risks associated to these products.