A seminar on Food Safety and Foodborne Diseases held on May 2, 2019 was really helpful to

assure food safety within the people of the community. The seminar targeted the practice of personal
hygiene, routines for managing and maintaining kitchen cleanliness to avoid cross contamination of
food; in addition, the basic concepts of sports nutrition containing macronutrients, micronutrients and
fluids were tackled to fully understand how food contributes or affects the body at the same time, to
ameliorate the myths that were passed by people to people about the basic concepts of food, and most
importantly, to learn how to eat right and apply it on a person’s diet.

Humans are advised to eat at least three times a day. Moreover, food safety shall be observed
at all times to avoid foodborne illnesses that are due to food contamination. With enough
understanding of these contributing factors pertaining to food contamination divided into three,
biological, chemical, and physical, food contamination can be lessened or ceased taking all things into
consideration

Physically, accidental contamination of food with objects are observed due to the inadequate
understanding of people about the sources of food contamination, such as the raw materials, raw
ingredients, water, soil, food handlers, packaging, et al., or food preparation carelessness which is one of
the main causes of food contamination. In relation to the previous factor, chemical reactions that
promote to contamination with chemicals of food itself or food throughout the product chain shall be
observed. For exemplification, acids such as vinegar, lemon juice, et al. must be added at the end of the
cooking process to prevent discoloration of vegetables; in addition, mixing vegetables to meat dishes
may increase the chance of food spoilage, for starchy vegetables attract more water that may contribute
to contamination of food. Lastly, the biological factor that includes the presence of pathogens in food
which leads to pathogenesis has to be observed properly. Most likely, pathogens grow in food when
proper storing of food is not observed. Hence, the biological behavior of pathogenic microorganisms
shall be known to avoid food spoilage or poisoning. Pathogens requires energy source to grow, such as
carbohydrates or proteins, food, especially meat, can be their natural habitat. These microorganisms live
in an environment with low or no acidity levels and temperatures between 5-57 degree Celsius and also
known as the temperature danger zone (TDZ). The number of pathogens double every twenty minutes
and a food in a TDZ within four hours may have enough pathogens to make someone sick. Some
pathogens need oxygen while others do not and moisture is needed for pathogen spread.

Taking everything into account, proper personal hygiene, food preservation, food preparation
and food sanitation are needed to prevent foodborne illnesses that can be caused by inadequate
knowledge and improper cooking. Hence, understanding the dos and don’ts can make a person apart
from pathogenesis; that is being said, awareness is the greatest agent for safety.

As a sergeant, I contribute to the mission of the bureau; that is being said, to enhance the safety
of the public by ensuring humane safekeeping and so on. In relation to food safety and as a father of our
family, I shall continue observing safety practices and routines in food preparations and any factors in
relation to food, and maintain a healthy lifestyle by promoting proper and healthy diet to our family
members. Due to the benefit like the proper knowledge that I have acquired from the seminar, I will be
able to make those possible and I shall leave a quote,

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” – Benjamin Franklin