Why Does Thailand Have Crap Food

[Lite Beer]

Best food in the world. Never been ill in 4 years.

[PeaceBlondie]

Great thread, in which the hygiene of food in Pattaya is compared with a burger van on South Shields (Boomer, Sooner!). Mama said I had a cast iron stomach. Here I've only gotten a touch of diarrhea, and probably got twice as much living in Mexico for fewer years.

And at first I though kerryk's tirade was against Thai cuisine, not its cleanliness. Heck, I didn't even get sick from eating menudo in Capital Hill on a Sunday morning....

[Ulysses G.]

Personally, I don't like the taste of Thai food. I think Japanese, Vietnamese is worlds better. Never had a big problem with cleanliness though.

[rcm]

If you are moaning about food standards in Thailand, you don't want to know what happens in Western kitchens!

Someone mentioned 3 cutting boards - you need 6! Red - raw meat, blue - raw fish, yellow - cooked meat, brown - vegetables, green - salad & fruit and white - dairy.

Kerryk, if you don't like the or the preparation, should I e-mail you a map to the airport?

Correct,

...how many household and operations do have this 3-compartment sinks and cutting boards.... and use it correctly? Having seen a lot of Kitchens in my Life ....i think western kitchens do have same issues over cross contamination although it mostlikely doesn't happen on the cutting Board(or visibly to the customer)...... mostly the problem starts in the refrigerator by storing wrongly, or the supplier. So you can see already ...it takes time (as one factor) for the Bacteria to multiply and when it reaches unsafe levels thats when you might get ill. Thai food is normally freshly prepared and eaten without delay....not much chance to get foodborne illness.

[kerryk]

Why Thailand has crap food.

One reason is holding temps. Food cannot be held at room temp. It will poison you. Food should be below 40F or above 135F.

Another is cross contamination. You can’t use just one cutting board for chicken, pork, and so on.

Another is three compartment sinks. One to wash, one to rinse and one to sanitize. They are non existent in Thailand.

Next time you eat at a street side vendor look for the above things. When you get sick you can remember reading it here.

Why does Thailand not enforce even these basic standards? Anyone have any ideas? I don’t really have a clue.

You happened to work for CDC or something or on cruise ships???

Just for your information the guide lines you just mentioned are only required by vessels (VSP Vessel Sanitation Program) coming from foreign soil sailing into a US port. These requirements do not apply for any land based operation not even in the US. So stop whining as 3 compartment sinks and stuff like that dont even exist in your local McDonalds mister as I am sure that is the food you prefer am I right. Get your head screwed on the right way ( on yourshoulders and not your ass) or another alternative is leave Thailand and never come back so you wont get sick from Thai food no more. Ciao

I have worked in the food business in the US for 30 years. The requirements I mentioned are standard in each and every restaurant in the US and have been for 30 years in every state in the US.

Search HACCP on google for confirmation. In addition to those requirements most states require HACCP training for each and every employee to be employed in a food service establishment.

HACCP is also the recognized international standard and says that improper holding temps cause 90% of foodborne illness.

I was going to tell you all the places to eat in Pattaya that use these standards but since you all never get sick I guess I will keep that info to myself. Happy eating.

Edited March 3, 2007 by kerryk

[kerryk]

If you are moaning about food standards in Thailand, you don't want to know what happens in Western kitchens!

Someone mentioned 3 cutting boards - you need 6! Red - raw meat, blue - raw fish, yellow - cooked meat, brown - vegetables, green - salad & fruit and white - dairy.

Kerryk, if you don't like the or the preparation, should I e-mail you a map to the airport?

Correct,

...how many household and operations do have this 3-compartment sinks and cutting boards.... and use it correctly? Having seen a lot of Kitchens in my Life ....i think western kitchens do have same issues over cross contamination although it mostlikely doesn't happen on the cutting Board(or visibly to the customer)...... mostly the problem starts in the refrigerator by storing wrongly, or the supplier. So you can see already ...it takes time (as one factor) for the Bacteria to multiply and when it reaches unsafe levels thats when you might get ill. Thai food is normally freshly prepared and eaten without delay....not much chance to get foodborne illness.

Most households have bleach and or dishwashers in the West. If you sanitize one board between products it is fine. Has anyone ever seen a bottle of bleach in Thailand? Most problems do not start with the supplier. If you cook to the proper temps the bad bacteria in the product is killed. Most problems are with the cooking and holding process.

I was an executive of three major restaurant chains (Wendy's, Hilton Hotels, Golden Corral) in addition to owing my own restaurant and chain of restaurants and 99% of our problems were employees not following correct food handling procedure not our suppliers.

Maybe some of you remember Jack In The Box in the US that killed the kids. The burgers would have been fine even with E coli if they had been cooked to the proper temp.

[gummy]

Why Thailand has crap food.

One reason is holding temps. Food cannot be held at room temp. It will poison you. Food should be below 40F or above 135F.

Another is cross contamination. You can't use just one cutting board for chicken, pork, and so on.

Another is three compartment sinks. One to wash, one to rinse and one to sanitize. They are non existent in Thailand.

Next time you eat at a street side vendor look for the above things. When you get sick you can remember reading it here.

Why does Thailand not enforce even these basic standards? Anyone have any ideas? I don't really have a clue.

You happened to work for CDC or something or on cruise ships???

Just for your information the guide lines you just mentioned are only required by vessels (VSP Vessel Sanitation Program) coming from foreign soil sailing into a US port. These requirements do not apply for any land based operation not even in the US. So stop whining as 3 compartment sinks and stuff like that dont even exist in your local McDonalds mister as I am sure that is the food you prefer am I right. Get your head screwed on the right way ( on yourshoulders and not your ass) or another alternative is leave Thailand and never come back so you wont get sick from Thai food no more. Ciao

I have worked in the food business in the US for 30 years. The requirements I mentioned are standard in each and every restaurant in the US and have been for 30 years in every state in the US.

Search HACCP on google for confirmation. In addition to those requirements most states require HACCP training for each and every employee to be employed in a food service establishment.

HACCP is also the recognized international standard and says that improper holding temps cause 90% of foodborne illness.

I was going to tell you all the places to eat in Pattaya that use these standards but since you all never get sick I guess I will keep that info to myself. Happy eating.

And I guess you never put your bare arse on a toilet seat either and what about toilet door handles do you sterilise them before touching ? - enough bacteria on them to worry you surely ? Guess you only eat and don't crap or pee anywhere?. Do you know Weho ?

[mr_hippo]

kerryk - do you have a triple sink and 6 cutting boards in your house? If not, why not? You say that "99% of our problems were employees not following correct food handling procedure not our suppliers" That is poor management/supervision. Would they be better employees had they been HSCCP certified? I think not.

[madjbs]

Why cant people realize that sterilizing everything you see before you even so much as breath on it doesn’t help! Your body is now going to be used to this hospital sterile atmosphere and as soon as you digest a tiny cell of bacteria that normally wouldn’t even last half a second in an average person, its going to make you violently ill because your body has never seen such a thing before. This is the only reason why these people that wash there hands 300 times per day etc.. get ill all the time and just blame it on the perfectly average food which the rest of the nation can eat for years without getting ill.

Jake

[Dirk_brijs]

Why Thailand has crap food.

One reason is holding temps. Food cannot be held at room temp. It will poison you. Food should be below 40F or above 135F.

Another is cross contamination. You can’t use just one cutting board for chicken, pork, and so on.

Another is three compartment sinks. One to wash, one to rinse and one to sanitize. They are non existent in Thailand.

Next time you eat at a street side vendor look for the above things. When you get sick you can remember reading it here.

Why does Thailand not enforce even these basic standards? Anyone have any ideas? I don’t really have a clue.

You happened to work for CDC or something or on cruise ships???

Just for your information the guide lines you just mentioned are only required by vessels (VSP Vessel Sanitation Program) coming from foreign soil sailing into a US port. These requirements do not apply for any land based operation not even in the US. So stop whining as 3 compartment sinks and stuff like that dont even exist in your local McDonalds mister as I am sure that is the food you prefer am I right. Get your head screwed on the right way ( on yourshoulders and not your ass) or another alternative is leave Thailand and never come back so you wont get sick from Thai food no more. Ciao

I have worked in the food business in the US for 30 years. The requirements I mentioned are standard in each and every restaurant in the US and have been for 30 years in every state in the US.

Search HACCP on google for confirmation. In addition to those requirements most states require HACCP training for each and every employee to be employed in a food service establishment.

HACCP is also the recognized international standard and says that improper holding temps cause 90% of foodborne illness.

I was going to tell you all the places to eat in Pattaya that use these standards but since you all never get sick I guess I will keep that info to myself. Happy eating.

Mister Kerryk, If you mention now you have been working for 30 years in the food industry and say that you have been to a so called HACCP training I am affraid you h

[markr]

Why cant people realize that sterilizing everything you see before you even so much as breath on it doesn’t help! Your body is now going to be used to this hospital sterile atmosphere and as soon as you digest a tiny cell of bacteria that normally wouldn’t even last half a second in an average person, its going to make you violently ill because your body has never seen such a thing before. This is the only reason why these people that wash there hands 300 times per day etc.. get ill all the time and just blame it on the perfectly average food which the rest of the nation can eat for years without getting ill.

Jake

Spot on jake!

Mark

[joskydive]

Wow, didn't realise I had such a strong stomach! I only cook when I'm forced to and can't find a street vendor and even eat the chillies straight from the tree. Unfortunately, there aren't any sinks out in the garden so they don't get washed. I've done this for the last 8 years and never had a down day. Apart from the sun, sea, sand and so on, the food is a lot of the reason why I stay here - it's delicious.

[glenbat]

i'm a real fussy eater in the UK yet have eaten most things in LOS and never felt ill, love the food and the way its served/people you buy it from.

Cant beat it

[manjara]

I've only been ill twice in 4 years and it wasn't much more than diarrhea. i.e. I didn't have to go to the hospital, just spend some time puking and sitting on the toilet.

I've eaten nearly all the different Thai foods, including larb nua (the uncooked stuff), insects, raw fish/prawns, etc

My theory is that the food is very fresh, and therefore doesn't get stored long enough to get an accumlation of the nasty bacteria.

In the west, our meat is often days old before it even gets on the shelves. Although 'properly' refridgerated, it is old and quite possibly has nasty bacteria on it.

As Kerryk says the main problems are in the holding temperatures, but if the food is only held for a short time, it's not an issue

Most street traders go to the market in the morning, buy some freshly slaughtered meat, then they prepare and cook it the same day.

My conclusion, you're more likely to get sick in a Western restaurant where food is kept for days and refridgeration units are inefficient.

[buriramboy]

over 7 years in Thailand and never been ill once from the food, my only problem is the 20+ bottles of heineken that i drink with my food that does me no favours.

BB

[lazeeboy]

Why Thailand has crap food.

One reason is holding temps. Food cannot be held at room temp. It will poison you. Food should be below 40F or above 135F.

Another is cross contamination. You can't use just one cutting board for chicken, pork, and so on.

Another is three compartment sinks. One to wash, one to rinse and one to sanitize. They are non existent in Thailand.

Next time you eat at a street side vendor look for the above things. When you get sick you can remember reading it here.

Why does Thailand not enforce even these basic standards? Anyone have any ideas? I don't really have a clue.

Can't really say that Thai Food is crap .....just potentially hazardous

If it wasn't for the CDC , VSP (vessel sanitation program) and Haccp than there would be many other Western Countries who would have the same "possible cross contaminations" . Fact is we survived then, and we do survive now without it too(here in thailand). I never had any foodborne illness here in Thailand ( i have been here since 3 years continuous) ....but i had one in the US , South Africa , Mexico and Uk.

Cutting Boards with color coding and preferably not made of wood (which than changed back to be wooden being preferred as per VSP) is a valid point . But are they used accordingly in the west? same applies to the 3 compartment sink. I am not saying they don't exist in the US or elsewhere.....but are they really used the way they were meant too? Not to mention the chlorine solution(sanitation sink ...) how many follow the right ppm's and use it in the correct sink too?

The fact that Thai food is cooked and eaten with almost no timegap doesn't give it much chance to create much harmful bacteria or leaves those which are harmful on a "relative" safe level.

It certainly would be better to enforce Food sanitation a little but it shouldn't be as crazy as the CDC (center of Disease Control) outlines things and only applies it to everyone else, except their own soil.

rcm

i delivered chickens to indian restaurants in the 80s there kitchens fall way below even the soup man on his bike been here 13years only been sick from singha

[kerryk]

Great thread, in which the hygiene of food in Pattaya is compared with a burger van on South Shields (Boomer, Sooner!). Mama said I had a cast iron stomach. Here I've only gotten a touch of diarrhea, and probably got twice as much living in Mexico for fewer years.

And at first I though kerryk's tirade was against Thai cuisine, not its cleanliness. Heck, I didn't even get sick from eating menudo in Capital Hill on a Sunday morning....

I like Thai food and eat it all the time.

One would rarely get sick from menudo because it is boiled.

[soundman]

Eat everything here, fom clssy foreign owned restaurants to dodgy street vendors.

Have tried all sorts of bugs and animals etc. (malairng, gop, dtao, ngoo)

Never been sick a day.

Chilly belly occasionally - quick trip to the crapper - no probs.

Soundman.

PS. Probably wouldn't eat a dog if I actually knew that was what I was getting.

[kerryk]

kerryk - do you have a triple sink and 6 cutting boards in your house? If not, why not? You say that "99% of our problems were employees not following correct food handling procedure not our suppliers" That is poor management/supervision. Would they be better employees had they been HSCCP certified? I think not.

The reason that the US has required HACCP training for every food service employee is because most food service employees are uneducated minimum wage employees who have some illiterate idea that food sanitation is not really necessary to preserve health.

When you are dealing with ignorant low class people that make up the majority of food service employees I think that HACCP training is a great assistance in making them better and safer employees.

It is the experience of most health departments that the program is working.

[glenbat]

glad soundman mentioned the crapper... why do i go so much when in LOS? 3 or 4 times a day is that normal? and its more liquidified (if thats a word)

[kerryk]

Why Thailand has crap food.

One reason is holding temps. Food cannot be held at room temp. It will poison you. Food should be below 40F or above 135F.

Another is cross contamination. You can't use just one cutting board for chicken, pork, and so on.

Another is three compartment sinks. One to wash, one to rinse and one to sanitize. They are non existent in Thailand.

Next time you eat at a street side vendor look for the above things. When you get sick you can remember reading it here.

Why does Thailand not enforce even these basic standards? Anyone have any ideas? I don't really have a clue.

You happened to work for CDC or something or on cruise ships???

Just for your information the guide lines you just mentioned are only required by vessels (VSP Vessel Sanitation Program) coming from foreign soil sailing into a US port. These requirements do not apply for any land based operation not even in the US. So stop whining as 3 compartment sinks and stuff like that dont even exist in your local McDonalds mister as I am sure that is the food you prefer am I right. Get your head screwed on the right way ( on yourshoulders and not your ass) or another alternative is leave Thailand and never come back so you wont get sick from Thai food no more. Ciao

I have worked in the food business in the US for 30 years. The requirements I mentioned are standard in each and every restaurant in the US and have been for 30 years in every state in the US.

Search HACCP on google for confirmation. In addition to those requirements most states require HACCP training for each and every employee to be employed in a food service establishment.

HACCP is also the recognized international standard and says that improper holding temps cause 90% of foodborne illness.

I was going to tell you all the places to eat in Pattaya that use these standards but since you all never get sick I guess I will keep that info to myself. Happy eating.

And I guess you never put your bare arse on a toilet seat either and what about toilet door handles do you sterilise them before touching ? - enough bacteria on them to worry you surely ? Guess you only eat and don't crap or pee anywhere?. Do you know Weho ?

Are you from Australia? That would explain it.

Food borne illness costs Australia 4.2 billion a year.

[rcm]

If you are moaning about food standards in Thailand, you don't want to know what happens in Western kitchens!

Someone mentioned 3 cutting boards - you need 6! Red - raw meat, blue - raw fish, yellow - cooked meat, brown - vegetables, green - salad & fruit and white - dairy.

Kerryk, if you don't like the or the preparation, should I e-mail you a map to the airport?

Correct,

...how many household and operations do have this 3-compartment sinks and cutting boards.... and use it correctly? Having seen a lot of Kitchens in my Life ....i think western kitchens do have same issues over cross contamination although it mostlikely doesn't happen on the cutting Board(or visibly to the customer)...... mostly the problem starts in the refrigerator by storing wrongly, or the supplier. So you can see already ...it takes time (as one factor) for the Bacteria to multiply and when it reaches unsafe levels thats when you might get ill. Thai food is normally freshly prepared and eaten without delay....not much chance to get foodborne illness.

Most households have bleach and or dishwashers in the West. If you sanitize one board between products it is fine. Has anyone ever seen a bottle of bleach in Thailand? Most problems do not start with the supplier. If you cook to the proper temps the bad bacteria in the product is killed. Most problems are with the cooking and holding process.

I was an executive of three major restaurant chains (Wendy's, Hilton Hotels, Golden Corral) in addition to owing my own restaurant and chain of restaurants and 99% of our problems were employees not following correct food handling procedure not our suppliers.

Maybe some of you remember Jack In The Box in the US that killed the kids. The burgers would have been fine even with E coli if they had been cooked to the proper temp.

"Most problems do not start with the supplier."

Having worked for most mayor Cruise lines(Silversea, RSSC, Royal Viking, Cunard ...just to name a few) in the Food service & Purchasing i need to underline that the problem starts with the supplier , specially on the Veggies and Fruit side (quite often was an outbreak caused by contaminated salads- ) .....most of that stuff won't be cooked and partially potentially hazardous (even the watermelon is declared as potential hazardous as per CDC - because of its ph level) . Of course, it then continues in the Stores and then the Kitchen.

Yes, it is true that employees don't follow correct food handling.....if nobody checks/reinforces and doesn't continue the education , that is.

You wrote yourself the most problems are with cooking and holding process ....something that hardly applies to Thai Food - specially the street Vendors food ...it is cooked and eaten without delay(and no salads involved...).

This even gives you fresh prepared food....So i can't see why Thai Food should be diagnosed as "crap" ...but i do recall Wendy's burger.....are those the square patties in the round bun? If so, than you already know what real crap is.

rcm

[Chaz1819]

It is what it is, I just don't see how we can say it is all crap or that it is all the best in the world

Lets keep it simple - If the food looks good and things look clean - it probably is, come again

If the vender looks nasty, the food looks nasty and there is a roach warming his toes by the fire - odds are pretty good you won't enjoy it

[kerryk]

Why cant people realize that sterilizing everything you see before you even so much as breath on it doesn’t help! Your body is now going to be used to this hospital sterile atmosphere and as soon as you digest a tiny cell of bacteria that normally wouldn’t even last half a second in an average person, its going to make you violently ill because your body has never seen such a thing before. This is the only reason why these people that wash there hands 300 times per day etc.. get ill all the time and just blame it on the perfectly average food which the rest of the nation can eat for years without getting ill.

Jake

The single biggest thing one can do to protect against illness is wash your hands.

Ask your doctor or any one with even a small amount of education in any health service.

The first thing that is advised in a flue outbreak or any other health crisis is wash your hands more.

You are retelling old wives tales and not any up to date information on being healthy.

Jake, I am a well educated person in my area. I was also department head and professor of hotel and restaurant administration on a college level.

I know the cost of food borne illness and its consequences to society.

You are not only wrong but your belief system is harmful to public health.

There is no excuse for the death of people by not knowing the basics of sanitation.

In Thailand it is worse because of the dismal conditions of most toilet facilities available to food service workers. There is no soap nor any toilet paper or towels available to them when they go to the toilet.

The name of the food poisoning you get from eating Thai restaurant worker shit on your chicken because the cook had no adequate hand washing facilities is Clostridium perfringens. This of course is OK if the food is boiled then even Thai shit is OK. But if you are eating cow men gai you are in trouble.

[lost in space]

Why Thailand has crap food.

One reason is holding temps. Food cannot be held at room temp. It will poison you. Food should be below 40F or above 135F.

Another is cross contamination. You can’t use just one cutting board for chicken, pork, and so on.

Another is three compartment sinks. One to wash, one to rinse and one to sanitize. They are non existent in Thailand.

Next time you eat at a street side vendor look for the above things. When you get sick you can remember reading it here.

Why does Thailand not enforce even these basic standards? Anyone have any ideas? I don’t really have a clue.

You happened to work for CDC or something or on cruise ships???

Just for your information the guide lines you just mentioned are only required by vessels (VSP Vessel Sanitation Program) coming from foreign soil sailing into a US port. These requirements do not apply for any land based operation not even in the US. So stop whining as 3 compartment sinks and stuff like that dont even exist in your local McDonalds mister as I am sure that is the food you prefer am I right. Get your head screwed on the right way ( on yourshoulders and not your ass) or another alternative is leave Thailand and never come back so you wont get sick from Thai food no more. Ciao

[gummy]

Why Thailand has crap food.

One reason is holding temps. Food cannot be held at room temp. It will poison you. Food should be below 40F or above 135F.

Another is cross contamination. You can't use just one cutting board for chicken, pork, and so on.

Another is three compartment sinks. One to wash, one to rinse and one to sanitize. They are non existent in Thailand.

Next time you eat at a street side vendor look for the above things. When you get sick you can remember reading it here.

Why does Thailand not enforce even these basic standards? Anyone have any ideas? I don't really have a clue.

You happened to work for CDC or something or on cruise ships???

Just for your information the guide lines you just mentioned are only required by vessels (VSP Vessel Sanitation Program) coming from foreign soil sailing into a US port. These requirements do not apply for any land based operation not even in the US. So stop whining as 3 compartment sinks and stuff like that dont even exist in your local McDonalds mister as I am sure that is the food you prefer am I right. Get your head screwed on the right way ( on yourshoulders and not your ass) or another alternative is leave Thailand and never come back so you wont get sick from Thai food no more. Ciao

I have worked in the food business in the US for 30 years. The requirements I mentioned are standard in each and every restaurant in the US and have been for 30 years in every state in the US.

Search HACCP on google for confirmation. In addition to those requirements most states require HACCP training for each and every employee to be employed in a food service establishment.

HACCP is also the recognized international standard and says that improper holding temps cause 90% of foodborne illness.

I was going to tell you all the places to eat in Pattaya that use these standards but since you all never get sick I guess I will keep that info to myself. Happy eating.

And I guess you never put your bare arse on a toilet seat either and what about toilet door handles do you sterilise them before touching ? - enough bacteria on them to worry you surely ? Guess you only eat and don't crap or pee anywhere?. Do you know Weho ?

Are you from Australia? That would explain it.

Food borne illness costs Australia 4.2 billion a year.

No I am not from Oz. However that is an amazing statistic. Can you quote me please where that data was gained from so I can review it, and is that AUS $, US $ or THB ? Asuming it is AUS $ and given that just recently the entire population has just passed 20 million that works out at 2.1 million AUS $ for each person, far far in excess of the GDP per capita, perhaps your figures shall we say are a slight over inflation?

[kerryk]

I've only been ill twice in 4 years and it wasn't much more than diarrhea. i.e. I didn't have to go to the hospital, just spend some time puking and sitting on the toilet.

I've eaten nearly all the different Thai foods, including larb nua (the uncooked stuff), insects, raw fish/prawns, etc

My theory is that the food is very fresh, and therefore doesn't get stored long enough to get an accumlation of the nasty bacteria.

In the west, our meat is often days old before it even gets on the shelves. Although 'properly' refridgerated, it is old and quite possibly has nasty bacteria on it.

As Kerryk says the main problems are in the holding temperatures, but if the food is only held for a short time, it's not an issue

Most street traders go to the market in the morning, buy some freshly slaughtered meat, then they prepare and cook it the same day.

My conclusion, you're more likely to get sick in a Western restaurant where food is kept for days and refridgeration units are inefficient.

There are three produce markets in Pattaya. The health department surveyed all three a few months ago.

One of the markets had no flies or bugs around. Great eh?

Nope one of the markets sprayed all of the produce with bug spray. The story was on TV.

Today I went to the grocery store, Foodland. I watched the deli clerk restock the hot dogs and sausages in the deli case. Guess what? She put the new sausages on the top of the pile as she did the hot dogs and other things.

If she has been working there a couple of years the sausages on the bottom of the pile may be a couple of years old.

There just is not supervision here. Freshness is a matter of chance and not procedure.

Primal cuts of meat, ie prime rib or whole roasts need to be aged at least 28 days from the day of slaughter. Grocery stores tend cut primal cuts into steaks earlier hence the steaks one buys at the grocery store are tougher than in good restaurants who age the meat the proper length of time before cutting. There are two methods of aging, wet and dry but I doubt if you really want me to get into the specifics.

[lost in space]

Why Thailand has crap food.

One reason is holding temps. Food cannot be held at room temp. It will poison you. Food should be below 40F or above 135F.

Another is cross contamination. You can’t use just one cutting board for chicken, pork, and so on.

Another is three compartment sinks. One to wash, one to rinse and one to sanitize. They are non existent in Thailand.

Next time you eat at a street side vendor look for the above things. When you get sick you can remember reading it here.

Why does Thailand not enforce even these basic standards? Anyone have any ideas? I don’t really have a clue.

Your last statement was correct.

[mr_hippo]

kerryk - do you have a triple sink and 6 cutting boards in your house? If not, why not? You say that "99% of our problems were employees not following correct food handling procedure not our suppliers" That is poor management/supervision. Would they be better employees had they been HSCCP certified? I think not.

The reason that the US has required HACCP training for every food service employee is because most food service employees are uneducated minimum wage employees who have some illiterate idea that food sanitation is not really necessary to preserve health.

When you are dealing with ignorant low class people that make up the majority of food service employees I think that HACCP training is a great assistance in making them better and safer employees.

It is the experience of most health departments that the program is working.

Instead of blaming 'ignorant low class people', try blaming yourself and your management team and not using a lame excuse!

Once again, do you have a triple sink in your house? If not, why not?

[think_too_mut]

There are 10 or less Thai meals that are good and internationally recognized.

Italy would have hundreds if not thousands more.

Other "Thai" food are fish fried "thai way" or something than nobody in the world could spoil, no matter how they cook it. That food would taste good if just boiled in plain water (schimps).

Japanese don't even bother to cook it.

Other than fried rice, larb, a few soups, pad thai and krapao gai (and it's variants) it is all rubbish - guts, skin, fat, oil, bones.....disgusting to watch the locals eating it.

Even that (other than rice based cooking) is not everywhere upcountry. There I bring a toaster, jam, vegemite and a pack of lean ham. Much healthier than what they eat.

While they pig on the unspeakable trash, I am happy to sip a plain rice soup and look aside.