The quality of school meals served in the canteens of Algarve schools has improved over the last four years, according to data from ARS Algarve. Currently, 29% of the meals served in canteens are not of satisfactory quality, against 40% in 2011, when the ARS started the Program to Promote the Microbiological Quality of Meals in Educational Establishments.
The collection of samples for this program is carried out in the public schools of Pre-School Education (JI) and 1st Cycle Basic Education (EB1) in all municipalities in the region for analysis by Environmental Health Technicians of the Health Units. Public Health of the Algarve Regional Health Administration.
The objective of this intervention, carried out in a strategic and articulated manner between Health Authorities at regional and local level, is to "promote the microbiological quality of food and thus ensure the prevention of collective food poisoning that may incur among schoolchildren" .
In 2011, when the microbiological surveillance of food was reactivated at the Regional Public Health Laboratory of the Algarve Dr. Laura Ayres, around 90 schools were part of the program. In 2014, it covered around 140 school establishments, which corresponds to around 78% of the universe of JI/EB1 in the region.
“The results we got initially were not very encouraging. 40% of the samples of ready-to-eat, cooked meals were unsatisfactory at the time, and the remaining 60% showed acceptable and satisfactory quality. Today we can say that this number has dropped to 29%, with the remaining 71% showing acceptable and satisfactory quality. It is a significant gain», explains the Director of the Department of Public Health and Planning at ARS Algarve, Ana Cristina Guerreiro.
The collection of samples carried out by technicians from the Health Center Groupings in school cafeterias is carried out "randomly and without prior notice", explains Alexandra Monteiro, Environmental Health Technician of the Department of Public Health and Planning of the ARS Algarve, stressing that "the frequency of sample collection varies in each school (on average from every four months to six months) depending on the risk assessment, such as the history of analytical results obtained, which may sometimes justify the carrying out of extraordinary analyses".
The continuous intervention in schools «aimed at evaluating the practices used, identifying possible risk situations, determining corrective measures, and enabling school establishments to adopt appropriate practices in the preparation, preparation and preservation of foodstuffs».
"Most food-borne illnesses are of microbiological origin", adds Dália Pinheiro, also an Environmental Health Technician, explaining that food infections "generally are caused by inadequate handling, cross-infection, poor confection or conservation", hence the need for inspect the canteens.
“In this way we manage to control the microbiological safety of the meals that students consume, ensure that the food is really safe and that it does not cause food poisoning”, he emphasizes.
«It is a fundamental and essential work for the health of our target audience. The operationalization of this program makes it possible to contribute to increasing the microbiological safety of the meals that the school population consumes”, underlines Ana Cristina Guerreiro.
The Regional Health Delegate highlights: «Compliance with hygiene and safety conditions in food services, both at a structural and functional level, must be a constant concern of the institutions. This is the only way to achieve a safe meal that meets the demands and expectations of consumers».
Once collected, the food samples, from all Public Health Units in the region, are transported to the Regional Public Health Laboratory Dr. Laura Ayres, for the determination of hygiene indicator microorganisms and pathogenic microorganisms and/or their toxins , with a view to evaluating their microbiological quality.
“The food samples are transported properly refrigerated and arrive at the LRSP on the same day as the collection, to start the analysis process as quickly as possible”, explains Dr. Jaqueline Dionísio, responsible for assessing the analytical results of the samples at the Regional Laboratory of Public Health Dr. Laura Ayres.
The Techniques of the Food Microbiology area, Eng. Carla Martins and Eng. Marta Fragoso, follow in a laboratory environment, which is recommended by ISO standards for different microorganisms. The analytical methods adopted during this analysis process include counting indicator microorganisms at 30°C, Molds and Yeasts, Enterobacteriaceae, E. coli e Listeria spp. and counting a range of pathogenic microorganisms that includes Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens, Coagulase positive staphylococci, search of samonella spp and Listeria monocytogenes. In the last stage of the process, the results are subject to review and reported to the requesting local health authority.
The Program for the Promotion of Microbiological Quality of Meals in Educational Establishments may, in the future, include the hygienic study of food handlers in schools, utensils and surfaces where meals are prepared, as well as other types of establishments, namely day care centers and elderly homes, according to the installed capacity of the Regional Public Health Laboratory.
“In addition to the epidemiological surveillance of collective food poisonings, preventive interventions in the field that seek to restrict their occurrence, primarily in specific risk groups”, emphasizes Dr. Ana Cristina Guerreiro, noting that the research “is based on a inter-institutional work» between the areas of Health, Catering Companies and ASAE.
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