Food At Bus Terminals, Train Stations Found Below Safety Standards: Thailand

[webfact]

FOOD HYGINE

Food at bus terminals, train stations found below par

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Most of the food sold at passenger terminals has been found to be below safety standards or even poisonous, Deputy Public Health Minister Surawit Khonsomboon said yesterday.

Citing a survey on food hygiene as part of a ministry campaign to ensure food safety during the four day Songkran holiday, he said 32 out of 81 samples showed Ecoli contamination, six contained the staphylococcus aureus bacteria, four showed salmonella and one had vibrio parahaemolyticus.

He called on consumers to always purchase ice or drinking water packaged in containers with a Food and Drugs Administration stamp of safety. He also urged consumers to only use straws with plastic covers. The survey was conducted at three key bus terminals and a major train station.

Police have also been warned against aiming high powered water guns at people's eyes or ears to avoid injury, and revellers are being told to not throw water at motorcyclists to avoid accidents. Revellers who cause a motorcycle to tip over by using high powered water guns will face assault charges, which carries a two year imprisonment sentence and/or a fine of up to Bt4,000. People are also not allowed to mix ice cubes or crushed ice in the water used to throw at each other. Shops selling banned watergun brands as well as those made from water pipes will be subjected to fines.

Bangkok police chief Pol LtGeneral Winai Thongsong has warned partygoers from getting out of hand and also encouraged women to avoid dressing scantily or participating in provocative moves. Men who touch female revellers inappropriately or molest them will be arrested. The key areas of Songkran celebration - Khao San, Silom, Royal City Avenue and Suan Luang Ror 9 - will be under close police watch, he added.

Deputy police chief Pol MajGeneral Wichai Sangpraphai said, so far, there had been no intelligence reports of planned insurgent attacks over the four day break.

A total of 105 areas in Bangkok will be under extra police security, along with all key bus terminals, train stations and both airports.

A joint operation centre run by the Metropolitan Police Bureau and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has been set up to implement road safety measures under the "Seven Dangerous Days" campaign to keep road casualties at the minimum from April 1117.

Speed limit, driving discipline, safety helmet law and don'tdrivedrunk policies will be strictly implemented. In addition, all public transport systems are undergoing safety checks and equipment inspection.

Medics and emergency medical services along with rescue and fire units will be on standby round the clock for seven days.

-- The Nation 2012-04-11

[mca]

Citing a survey on food hygiene as part of a ministry campaign to ensure food safety during the fourday Songkran holiday, he said 32 out of 81 samples showed Ecoli contamination, six contained the staphylococcus aureus bacteria, four showed salmonella and one had vibrio parahaemolyticus.

Strewth! I had salmonella poisoning once from some dodgy food in Mae Hong Song. I'm only slightly joking when I say that I felt so bad that dying was a preferable option.

[marquess]

I like all the rules about what not to do at Songkran, the sad thing is that is all likely to be lip service as most of the police will probably be drunk or ogling girls. Besides if you can literally get away with murder by paying out a bit of cash, throwing water hardly compares.

[FOODLOVER]

Hate to say it but food safety is not taught here. I went to a certain school being advertised here and the Thai chef instructor knew absolutely nothing about food safety. Raw chicken with uncooked vegetables and the such. Well, when i pointed out the situation i got a big fat "Never mind", i quickly dropped after i discovered he did not know a slicing knife from a filet knife.

Edited April 11, 2012 by FOODLOVER

[Thai at Heart]

Which would prompt the most obvious question, was there any soap in the toilets?

[smedly]

The Big problem here is hand washing, very few Thais wash their hands after going to the toilet - can you imagine the sandwitch making company for 7/11's bus stations etc - how many of them wash their hands after going to the toilet - add to that food handling protocall, also something else to note - how dirty do you think the bottle coolers (condoms) are in your local - constantly in the hands of dirty falangs who again don't wash their hands

[jcw]

Ops Normal, most Thais do not understand the basics of bacteria as they can not see it. Just basic education.

A good start would be to put soap in the toilets in Gov hospitals, just a thought.

[jonclark]

Which would prompt the most obvious question, was there any soap in the toilets?

Very well spotted!!!

[noitom]

Soap and paper in a Thai toilet? Other than occasional upscale shopping malls and hotels they are non existant.

[geriatrickid]

Which would prompt the most obvious question, was there any soap in the toilets?

Very well spotted!!!

No need for soap. Everyone knows that you use the left hand to wipe your bum, and you eat with the right hand. Sheeesh.

[harrry]

Which would prompt the most obvious question, was there any soap in the toilets?

Very well spotted!!!

No need for soap. Everyone knows that you use the left hand to wipe your bum, and you eat with the right hand. Sheeesh.

So now you expect the schools to teach which hand is right and which is left.....

[moe666]

Two places I would never eat a bus station nor a train station, bring your food with you from your favorite street stall from which you never get sick,

[Payboy]

In addition, all public transport systems are undergoing safety checks and equipment inspection.

Glad they're doing this well in advance of songkran.

[Pib]

I wish the food problems were only at the bus and train stations, but it's much more widespread than that.

[geriatrickid]

Which would prompt the most obvious question, was there any soap in the toilets?

Very well spotted!!!

No need for soap. Everyone knows that you use the left hand to wipe your bum, and you eat with the right hand. Sheeesh.

So now you expect the schools to teach which hand is right and which is left.....

Good point. I stand corrected. My apologies.

[bushwacker]

I think it is interesting how the food preparers think that picking their noses or wiping the snot from their noses while handling food adds the special Thai secret ingredient to food. A technique that must be handed down from parent to child for centuries. The more proficient cooks grow one finger nail very long to work as a scrapper or pick as the need arises.

[TheWalkingMan]

...32 out of 81 samples showed Ecoli contamination, six contained the staphylococcus aureus bacteria, four showed salmonella and one had vibrio parahaemolyticus.

43/81 is 53%. Those are terrible odds.

[Thai at Heart]

...32 out of 81 samples showed Ecoli contamination, six contained the staphylococcus aureus bacteria, four showed salmonella and one had vibrio parahaemolyticus.

43/81 is 53%. Those are terrible odds.

It could be possible that it would be cleaner if they prepared it in the loo. At least there would be a chance that the odd work surface might get the odd splosh of vixol.

[LotusBoy]

"Most of the food sold at passenger terminals has been found to be below safety standards or even poisonous" Deputy Public Health Minister Surawit Khonsomboon said yesterday.....................

NO, you don't say!!

[ScottyJ11]

Unclean food at bus terminals?!

In other news, water is wet, sky is blue...

[giddyup]

Call me paranoid, but I won't even buy cooked food from the markets anymore. There is absolutely no health control for food in Thailand. I have no idea under what conditions the food has been prepared or stored. It may well have been left out overnight in somebody's kitchen with the rats and cockroaches snacking on it before being dished up at the market. My Thai GF says that they also "pad out" some Thai dishes using tissue paper, but at least that won't kill you. There's also a tendency to use flavour enhancers like MSG in large quantities, not to mention liberal helpings of sugar and salt. Thai food healthy? Not in a million years.

[lovetotravel]

Two places I would never eat a bus station nor a train station, bring your food with you from your favorite street stall from which you never get sick,

The standards for street vendors is no different. Ever seen them wash the dishes? You'd never eat there again if you did. Cold water, no soap, same bucket all day. Perfect conditions for all sorts of nasties.

[Gillespie]

Men who touch female revellers inappropriately or molest them will be arrested.

What about women who touch men?

[blazes]

Soap and paper in a Thai toilet? Other than occasional upscale shopping malls and hotels they are non existant.

Good quality arse paper in the Chiang Mai Ram Hospital. Fair do's. Plus soap to wash your hands and good running water. Whether used by others I am not sure....

[TomTao]

I had an e-coli infection a while age from unhygenic food prep, don't want to experience that again.

[TomTao]

Men who touch female revellers inappropriately or molest them will be arrested.

What about women who touch men?

Thats ok, its only inappropriate when a man touches a women.

[oldsailor35]

moe66......Don't be so sure about that. Last year i was staying at a hotel and my window faced the back where people lived along each side of the railway line. Their income was food stalls. Every morning i watched them getting the carts ready for the days trading, it was amazing, no hand washing, straight out of primative toilets to preparing food, any rinsing was done at a dirty hose and goodness knows whats in that water. I never even saw the lady wash herself let alone her hands before going out on the street. It should be law that they must use rubber cloves when handling food

Most of these people have no idea of hygiene, yesterday i watched a guy cooking chicken on the beach, picking his nose, scratching his head and his ass............yuk !

[NoshowJones]

There's no chance of the police arresting anyone for shooting water at riders on motorcycles during Songcran, about three years ago on a very busy road, there were two children about 12 years old doing just that at me, supervised by a female adult, I stopped my bike and gave the adult hell and all I got was "solly solly".

Let me just say that if any Farang adult throws water at me in any shape or form, they will end up with a very sore face, so any of you stupid farangs who want to throw water at Farang strangers, make sure the person they try to throw water at is not six ft tall, dark hair, quite slim and very fit looking. You have been warned.

[jambodave]

In most countries you get what you pay for.What do you expect to get when you pay 30 baht for a meal at a Rail or Bus station.

[sprq]

I presume at the airports they're going to look for contamination by extreme overpricing. They will have great success at Swampy.