Central kitchens serving restaurants and households in Saudi Arabia are barred from using wooden boards or knives with wooden handles to cut meat, poultry and fish, according to regulations proposed by the kingdom’s Ministry of Municipalities. Instead, these tools are to be replaced with boards and knives with handles made of food-safe materials such as plastic for easy cleaning. The draft also stipulates that an approved area be designated for food preparation and restricted to food handling only. This area must be visible to service recipients and separated by transparent glass with the possibility of using cameras and screens, reported the Saudi newspaper Okaz. The central kitchen must also include a designated area for handling uncooked food. It must be designed in a way that ensures food operations proceed in one direction only, from receiving it to storing it, then preparing and cooking it, and ending with packaging, serving or distributing it in order to curb the likelihood of contamination. In addition, the draft prohibits the reuse of food previously served or sold, and obligates restaurants and kitchens to contract with one of the licensed food preservation groups to redistribute the surplus food to avoid its waste. Cats and dogs The […]