MANILA, Philippines - Many cases of food poisoning can be traced to improper practices at home. Knowing safe procedures in food preparation will help reduce the incidence of food poisoning and other diseases resulting from the mishandling of food.
With this, the makers of quality Swiss Army products roll out the Victorinox line of color-coded knives in accordance with the food safety issues and standards set by the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP). HACCP identifies potential food safety hazards and recommends key actions to help eliminate these risks.
“Victorinox color-coded knives were designed to help consumers manage their kitchen efficiently and safely,” says Victorinox marketing manager Jennifer Liza. “While its cutting-edge blade technology is intended for a more streamlined food preparation, its handles are color-coded to help promote food safety in the kitchen.”
The slip-resistant Fibrox handles can be sterilized at temperatures of up to a maximum of 1500 Celsius.
Victorinox color-coded knife handles follow an international color coding system which specifies the particular usage of each knife model. This system helps reduce cross-contamination which is the main culprit behind food poisoning.
The application of each color is as follows:
• Red (raw meat). Raw meat products carry microbes that cause diseases and illnesses, disability and, in some cases, death to recipients of contaminated food. While most of these can be destroyed by proper cooking, using knives intended for raw meat for other types of food may transfer the harmful pathogens to those ready-to-eat foods.
• Yellow (poultry and cooked meat). For hygienic and health purposes, use a separate knife for cutting chicken and other cooked meat products.
• Blue (fish). These knives are designed for easy removal of skin and deboning of fish. Fish cutleries can handle the delicate flesh of fish and other seafood.
• Green (fruits and vegetables). Fruits and some vegetables are eaten raw, like in salads and desserts. Using knives that are also used for raw meat and seafood increases the risk of diseases due to cross-contamination.
• White (bakery and dairy). There are special types of knives appropriate for slicing breads, pastries, and dairy products, such as butter and cheese. Using conventional knives for these items may result in crumbling bread or shoddy shaped pieces.
• Black (universal use).
Victorinox offers a wide range of knife models in every shape and size. Each one is specifically crafted to bring superior results for a particular cutting job.
The kitchen and carving knife comes in 19 cm. size. The 25 cm. wide-tip butcher knife is expected to cut through bones and frozen food seamlessly. The 15 cm. boning knife is available in straight wide-blade, flexible blade, and narrow curved blade models.
Also available are the 25 cm. wavy edge butcher knife, the 25 cm. round-tip slicing knife and the 18 cm. flexible blade filleting knife.
The Victorinox color-coded knives are exclusively distributed by Star Paper Corporation. Victorinox HACCP knives are available at Kitchen Pro, 4th floor, Shangri-La Plaza with telephone number 632-9121.