Carnival Sanitation/Hygiene Prep

When preparing for the Virgin Island’s annual Carnival, multiple steps need to be taken into consideration.  One of these preparation steps involves environmental health safety. Environmental health extends farther than just lead paint checks and chemical spills; it includes sanitation and hygiene.  Personal hygiene and sanitation play a large role in allowing vendors and consumers have a safe, illness-free carnival celebration. 

Research has shown that taking precautions such as properly washing your hands reduces the likelihood of getting foodborne illnesses and side effects such as diarrhea.  Whether you are a consumer purchasing food or the person making or selling the food, there are several sanitation steps you need to follow.  Unfortunately, many often overlook these relatively simple actions which can prevent more trouble in the long run.  According to the Washington State Food and Beverage Workers’ Manual, steps to reduce the likelihood of getting a foodborne illness are as follows: wash food and vegetables carefully, look closely at the foods you prepare, keep the food preparation area free of things that can fall into the food, only use approved containers to store food, protect food before you clean the cooking or preparation area, use approved sources of water, cook meat and fish at appropriate temperatures, do not work with food if you have diarrhea, are vomiting, have a fever, wash your hands after using the restroom, use gloves or utensils when handling ready-to-eat food, and more.  Although these steps won’t completely guarantee a person won’t get sick, it significantly reduces the chances.

    Many of these steps may seem like common sense, but according to a representative for the Virgin Islands Department of Health, many vendors are not aware of proper food handling techniques and many consumers are not aware of things to consider before purchasing food  from street vendors.  For example, many are not aware of guidelines for vendors regarding hair protection and nail polish.  Not following proper guidelines can result in the removal of food permit.

One simple way that vendors as well as carnival-goers to protect themselves is to participate in proper handwashing.  This includes washing hands before handling food, after handling food, after sneezing, after blowing your nose, after coughing, and after using the restroom. Workers dealing with food during Carnival need to practice effective hygiene, specifically handwashing, since they have direct contact with food and the consumers.  “Handwashing is thought to be effective for the prevention of transmission of diarrhea pathogens” (Burton, 2011).  The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes the spread of diarrheal diseases as a serious global problem (WHO, 2008) and estimates that each year, there are more than 2.2 million lives lost due to these infections, more than from malaria, HIV/AIDS and measles combined “(Boschi-Pinto, 2008).

“Foodborne illnesses increase during summer months.” Although Carnival takes place in spring, the US Virgin Islands has summer-like weather during that time.  This is typically because there is more outdoor cooking when the temperature is warmer outside.  One issue with outdoor cooking, particularly at fairs and festivals, is the lack of temperature control and washing facilities.  The CDC provides multiple questions for consumers to consider when purchasing food at festivals and fairs.  They include the following: Does the vendor have a clean/tidy workstation? Does the vendor have a sink for employees to wash their hands? Do the employees wear gloves or use tongs when handling food?  Does the vendor have refrigeration on site for raw ingredients or pre-cooked foods? Has the vendor been inspected? Requirements vary by state, but in general temporary and mobile vendors, like those at fairs and carnivals, should have a license to sell food and beverages in a particular state or county. You can check with the local health department to see if the vendors are licensed and if a food inspection has been completed.

“Despite methodological strengths and limitations, the weight of evidence from the studies discussed above collectively suggests that personal and environmental hygiene reduces the spread of infection. The consistent findings in both the intervention and observational studies support the conclusion that hygiene interventions other than infrastructure implementation are important for preventing infections” (Aiello, 2002).
    For more sanitation tips, please contact the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Health at www.healthvi.org.

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