Contamination and Personal Hygiene
Food handlers carry bacteria on their hands, hair, and bodies, so personal hygiene is one of the strongest defenses against foodborne illness in a NYC kitchen. This chapter covers handwashing, glove use, employee health, and how to keep contamination from spreading between foods.
Handwashing
Handwashing is the single most important personal-hygiene practice, and there is a correct method. Workers wet their hands and arms with warm running water, apply soap, and scrub vigorously for at least 20 seconds, reaching between the fingers and under the fingernails. Then they rinse thoroughly and dry with a single-use paper towel or a hand dryer. Staff must wash before starting work, before handling food or clean equipment, after using the restroom, after touching the face, hair, or body, after eating, drinking, or smoking, after handling raw meat, poultry, or fish, and after taking out garbage. Handwash sinks must be used only for handwashing, kept accessible, and stocked at all times with soap and a way to dry hands. Using a food-prep sink to wash hands is not allowed.
Bare-Hand Contact and Gloves
Ready-to-eat food is food that will not be cooked again before it is served, so touching it with bare hands can transfer pathogens straight to the customer. Workers should handle ready-to-eat food with single-use gloves, tongs, deli tissue, or utensils rather than bare hands. Gloves are not a substitute for handwashing; workers must wash their hands before putting gloves on, because dirty hands contaminate the inside of the glove. Change gloves when they tear, when switching between raw and ready-to-eat tasks, and at least every four hours during continuous use. Never wash and reuse disposable gloves. The certified supervisor should watch for these habits during service, since a single moment of bare-hand contact can undo an entire shift of careful work.
Employee Health and Habits
A sick worker can contaminate food and start an outbreak, so the certified supervisor must know when to send someone home. Workers with vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice, or a fever with sore throat should not handle food and may need to be kept entirely out of the operation until they are well or medically cleared. Cuts, burns, and boils must be covered with a clean, waterproof bandage, and a glove or finger cot worn over any bandage on the hand. Food handlers should wear clean outer clothing and a hair restraint, keep fingernails short, clean, and unpolished, and remove jewelry from the hands and arms. Eating, drinking, smoking, and chewing gum are not allowed in areas where food is prepared or dishes are washed, because they transfer saliva to the hands and food.
Cross-Contamination and Sanitizing
Cross-contamination happens when bacteria move from one food or surface to another, such as raw chicken juices dripping onto salad or a cutting board used for raw meat and then for vegetables without cleaning. Prevent it by separating raw and ready-to-eat foods, using separate or color-coded boards and utensils, cleaning and sanitizing between tasks, and storing raw meats below and away from ready-to-eat foods in the refrigerator, ordered by final cook temperature with raw poultry on the bottom. Cleaning removes visible dirt; sanitizing then reduces bacteria to safe levels. Food-contact surfaces must be cleaned and sanitized after each use and at least every four hours during continuous use. A common chlorine sanitizer solution is about 50 to 100 parts per million, tested with a test strip, and equipment must air dry.
Last updated: July 2026