We want to balance the mental health and wellness needs of the residents and potential food safety risks. As you can appreciate, a foodborne outbreak would certainly complicate things in a LTC home!
For homemade food items, if loved ones want to send a care package with homemade treats, they can but the food must be low-risk. By low-risk, I mean that the food must not be ‘potentially hazardous’. Potentially hazardous food is ‘food in a form or state that is capable of supporting the growth of infectious or toxigenic microorganisms and which requires time and temperature control to limit such growth such as cheese or cream.
Chocolate chip cookies, banana muffins, raspberry scones are examples of food items that are non-hazardous and can be accepted. Muffins with cream cheese icing and strawberry cheese cake are examples of food items that are potentially hazardous and should not be brought in.
The other option is that loved ones can purchase any type of food item, hazardous or potentially hazardous, in a ready to eat format from an inspected facility for a resident to consume right at that time.
We do require that food be placed in a solid surface container so that we can wipe it down with a disinfectant prior to taking it to the resident at the time of delivery.
I hope this is helpful. Thank you for your ongoing support,