If Tom has been cooking runs of beef patties but must move to the make up table, which steps should he take to ensure food safety?

• A. Double hand wash, sanitize hands and use single-use gloves
• B. Wash hands once
• C. Wipe surfaces with dry towel
• D. Only rinse hands

Answer: (A)

Preventing cross-contamination between raw beef and ready-to-eat items requires thorough hand hygiene and a clean barrier before handling anything at the makeup table. The best approach is to wash hands with soap for at least 20 seconds, dry with a disposable towel, sanitize, and then don clean, single-use gloves before touching the assembled foods. This sequence removes bacteria from hands and provides a protective barrier to prevent transfer to ready-to-eat components. Glove use should be fresh for this transition and gloves discarded after use, with hands re-sanitized as needed when changing tasks. Other options fall short because washing hands only once or rinsing them doesn’t reliably remove or kill microbes, and wiping surfaces with a dry towel does not sanitize or prevent contamination.