Hygienic Practices to be put in place in Garri Factory and Processing

HYGIENE COMPLIANCE

Maintaining good hygiene is vital for the health of the customers and the processors, as well as to build and maintain the processor’s reputation, encourage repeat business and grow sales.

PERSONAL AND FACTORY HYGIENE

·         All staff must maintain good personal hygiene, especially when handling finished products. This includes cleaning machines thoroughly before and after use.

·         Keep your fingernails short and clean

·         Clean the grater by pouring water into the hopper while the engine is running for a few minutes

·         Do not leave the grater dirty, always clean it before and after use otherwise, the dirt will contaminate the next batch of garri.

·         Dress in clean clothing, wear a head scarf or cap and remove all jewelry.

·         Wash your hands thoroughly with soap before starting work, after meal breaks and especially after using the toilet.

·         The wet area of the factory should be tiled for easy cleaning. Wash the floor of the factory at the end of every day with plenty of water and ensure the water flows into a soak away, not straight onto the ground outside the factory.  Clean cobwebs and dust from the inside of the roof, windows, walls and corners once a week.

ENVIRONMENTAL HYGIENE

·         Gather all cassava peels. When dried, they can be fed to livestock, e.g., goats and pigs. Cassava peels can also be used as a mulch to control nematodes in vegetable plots and as part of the substrate used to produce edible mushrooms. Do not throw cassava peels on waste dumps. They will rot and create a bad smell as well as attracting flies and germs.

·         Collect the milky waste-water from the fermentation bags in a bowl placed underneath the fermentation rack or by the side of the press. Starch in the milky waste-water will collect at the bottom of the bowl and can be collected, cleaned, then sold as a useful by-product.

·         Alternatively, channel the water into in a soak away just outside the factory. Do not allow the waste water to flow straight unto the ground next to the factory; this will make the environment dirty and promote the spread of germs.