How To - Navigate Food Safety
Introduction
Being on the road throughout different countries means we’ve encountered a wide variety of cuisines, which includes spices, flavors, textures, and foods we’ve never tried before. While this is part of the fun of travel and a truly unique way to experience culture, our stomachs sometimes panic at the sight of something new. Additionally, different standards for cleanliness, lack of modern practices on health & hygiene, and simply other storage methods can lead to the presence of bacteria we are unfamiliar with. With some simple guidelines in mind, we managed to get to the other side of our Southeast Asia segment, where stomach issues are not uncommon for travelers, unscathed!
Do your research // Make sure to check out any restaurants or cafes you want to visit on Google Reviews before you go. While reviews can be quite subjective, they can be valuable in determining if others have left the establishment feeling unwell. Additionally, it's a great way to take a peek at photos and get a feel for the cleanliness of the place.
Look for hints // This sounds pretty obvious, but there can be some telling signs that a restaurant isn’t adhering to cleanliness standards. Look out for grimy floors, uncleaned bathrooms, chaotic kitchens (if you can get a sneaky look), and how food is being stored. Especially when considering the latter, food shouldn’t be left out unrefrigerated for more than two hours and only one hour if it’s over 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit). While you won’t know exactly how long things have been out, you can look for color or smell changes, or simply the lack of anything cooling.
Trust your local guide // If you have a guide for the day or the duration of your stay in a city, always ask them for advice on how to approach food safely or simply on where to eat. Seeing as they work with other foreigners, they know what works and what doesn’t. That said, this rule doesn’t always hold true. For example, while we did not have a guide for our drive into Cambodia from Vietnam, we did have a driver via the transportation company. Part of our trip included a stop at a local restaurant for dinner, where you might assume it’s safe to trust the food. Unfortunately, the few people that ate the food became ill within just an hour after their meal.
Avoid suspicious street food // One of the biggest issues with street food is that it is not stored properly. Often, food will be left out in the heat for hours, allowing bad bacteria to multiply. Not only is it not cooled, but food can often be left uncovered, exposing it to insects, pollution, diseases in the air, etc. While you shouldn’t entirely avoid street food, trust your gut (literally) and your street smarts to determine whether or not you think it's safe to eat.
Wash your hands // This is a straight-forward one, but when we’re traveling, we don’t realize how many icky things we touch throughout the day – from door handles, to crosswalk buttons, to other people. Washing your hands will keep those unknown bacteria away from your food and ultimately, your stomach. If you know it’ll be difficult to wash your hands, just keep hand sanitizer with you for a quick solution.
Don’t drink tap water // I come from Switzerland, where the tap water is strictly regulated, naturally filtered, and carefully treated once it leaves the country’s clear glaciers. In Southeast Asia, for example, tap water doesn’t exactly have the same journey. Keep in mind that many less developed countries lack proper sanitation and waste management services. Thus, tap water may not be safe to drink and can leave you miserable.
While I’d recommend you follow the rules above, always use your best judgment. After all, you can use your senses to determine if the space is clean, food is stored properly, and everything is thoroughly cooked. It’s up to you to be on the cautious side or to take a gamble!