Which of the following describes how to prevent customers from eating contaminated food?

• A. Disposing of all contaminated, spoiled, unfit or out-of-date food; ensuring high risk foods are not served to vulnerable groups; thoroughly washing ready-to-eat raw foods; cooking food thoroughly.
• B. Only disposing of contaminated foods.
• C. Wash hands only after cooking.
• D. Serve high-risk foods to vulnerable groups.

Answer: (B)

When a food item is contaminated, the priority is to remove the hazard before it reaches customers. Disposing of contaminated foods directly eliminates the item from service, ensuring it cannot cause illness. This decisive action is safer than relying on cooking or washing, which may not neutralize all hazards or toxins and can still leave unsafe items in circulation. While other steps like handling spoilage or temperature control are important in general, the most reliable way to prevent customers from eating contaminated food is to discard the contaminated items. This aligns with the requirement to stop hazards at their source and prevents potential harm.