Hygiene

[Kangawallafox]

Little friendly advice for thai street vendors who cook so damn well.

Take the cats of the bench when your cooking,not a good look when they are licking the edge of the pots.

[geriatrickid]

What makes you think the cat is not the next ingredient?

[ToddWeston]

Why it's adds to the experience and besides my cat and dog both lick my plate at home when no one is looking

[krisb]

Actually MK sounds suddenly more appealing..

[thaipod]

Recently walking past the kitchen to the toilet and was amazed to see 2 cats licking the chopping board and plates . Cancelled my order after telling the owner in a load voice for the rest to hear,nobody was concerned and continued eating .

Not the first time I've seen this.

[namdocmai]

On our market there is a vendor who uses an old wooden desk with many shelves underneath it. When he "opens his shop" he has a long stick to get all the rats out of the desk. They suddenly run all around me when i walked there and then i saw where they came from.

In the Bayoke skytower buffet restaurant i saw mice living in the wall and in many other restaurants i have seen huge cockroaches.

[farang000999]

Disgusting.

[CharlieH]

You missed the dog under the cart taking a crap ! Adds to the aroma.

[dabhand]

A good few years back I watched a corn on the cob seller place her carriers down on the ground.

Whilst she was attending to a buyer, a dog came up, lifted it's leg and did the business over the corn in one of the carriers.

No-one else appeared to see this or, more probably, just couldn't care less.

I suddenly lost my appetite!!

[suthansman]

A drop of cat saliva after they have licked their ass cannot be such a bad thing. Can it?

Maybe you might get lucky and have a furball vomited up into your noodles.

[SOMeTOM]

I was doing my grocery's shopping at one of those big Tesco Lotus superstore, passing by the big refrigerated metal's tables where they put the fresh meat, some of those tables had some kind of mountains of meat as the store was just opened in the morning.

Then i noticed a big piece of meat on the floor, soon after a Tesco's shirt wearing sales assistant took that meat and just put it back on top of the pile of meat, no wash or anything else necessary, as it is probably the standard operating procedure for Tesco....great eh?

Also the Coffee Today inside Tesco, with her basin in full view of customers which was full of cups, spoons, etc, waiting for a wash up, then all of a sudden the cleaning lady which was mopping the Tesco's floor passes her dirty mop to the Coffee Today woman, which squeezed it just on top of the cups she serves to customers.....that was the last time i ever got my breakfast there....

Try to tell them something and they might even getting upset and telling you this is Thailand and you don't understand! Just as some of the best members on this forum

[tim armstrong]

While of course I agree with all the concerns about hygiene, restaurants the world over even in 'developed' countries sometimes have kitchens that its best not to look into. In Oz as many other places, kitchens are inspected frequently and restaurants closed down if sub standard. True also, many of these places sell Asian food.

But, the crucial point is how often have you been sick because of dodgy food ? Myself only once in 13 years when my wife were very hungry and stopped at a roadside place that looked suspect. But I also rarely eat from the Baine-Marie trays as they rarely keep them hot enough

[Prbkk]

Had a farang friend who liked street food and said I was crazy not to eat it. He got some kind of arthritic joint disease from seafood. In agony, off work for months. Hygiene is dubious anywhere but roadside pushes risk beyond my limits

[smokie36]

Recently had some fresh cockroaches as a side plate addition to ur wild boar curry.....was amusing trying to catch the little blighters....they are quick and resilient....shame they are so disorganised.

[Hedghog]

I know a very nice restaurant.

Wash the dishes pans etc,in the river downstream from the toilet.

Wash and go,or go and wash.

[NoshowJones]

I asked for some beef mince at a market stall, The vender put his uncovered hand into the mince took some out and put it on the scales. I just shouted " soc-ga- prok" and walked away. He could have been scratching his arse for all I know.

[David48]

I have to be honest ...

While I can't refute any of the personal experiences described above ... I think that we disregard, too easily, the ability of the human body to simply adjust to the conditions as they exist in our everyday lives.

The rise of allergies and asthma have been attributed to the western approach to crazy cleanliness.

This approach to hygiene is perpetuated by Big Phama who sell the 'cleansing products' ... JnJ, PnG, Dettoll etc.

That said, the first thing I do when I walk back into the apartment after being out on the streets is to wash my hands.

I don't get sick. I eat street food all the time.

Everyone has a story ...

.

[Kangawallafox]

While of course I agree with all the concerns about hygiene, restaurants the world over even in 'developed' countries sometimes have kitchens that its best not to look into. In Oz as many other places, kitchens are inspected frequently and restaurants closed down if sub standard. True also, many of these places sell Asian food.

But, the crucial point is how often have you been sick because of dodgy food ? Myself only once in 13 years when my wife were very hungry and stopped at a roadside place that looked suspect. But I also rarely eat from the Baine-Marie trays as they rarely keep them hot enough

Don't even compare with the west,at least we have health inspectors.

You are used to the bacteria here,go away awhile then return,I had the runs four times in two week,my wife twice and she is a former thai resident.

Come on,seriously don't even mention hygiene here in the same sentence as oz,that's ignorant.

[Kangawallafox]

I have to be honest ...

While I can't refute any of the personal experiences described above ... I think that we disregard, too easily, the ability of the human body to simply adjust to the conditions as they exist in our everyday lives.

The rise of allergies and asthma have been attributed to the western approach to crazy cleanliness.

This approach to hygiene is perpetuated by Big Phama who sell the 'cleansing products' ... JnJ, PnG, Dettoll etc.

That said, the first thing I do when I walk back into the apartment after being out on the streets is to wash my hands.

I don't get sick. I eat street food all the time.

Everyone has a story ...

.

Yes everyone has a story,however stopping cats from licking your cooking utensils is not exactly a crazy western approach to cleanliness now is it.

Just so you know,food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high,did you know that,very very high.

So I don't think the relaxed attitude to hygiene is the way to go,I will stick to our crazy western ways of washing things.

[David48]

Everyone has a story ....

Just so you know, food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high,did you know that,very very high.

Well, there you go ... different strokes, different folks.

I live in a broader Thai Family that consists of 8 adults and a variety of children.

None of them, while I've lived there, ever had had food poisoning.

Two of them (kids) got sick once ... but they were swimming in the Klong ... and if you saw what else swam in the Klong ... you never would.

So, I return to the norm ... everyone has a story.

Your mileage (and I don't doubt your experiences for a second) are different to mine.

But, for you to say that ... "Just so you know, food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high, did you know that, very very high." is a touch myopic and more likely pertinent to your personal experiences and not that of the greater Thai population.

...

.

[Beechboy]

It's surely missing the point to say that the body adapts to all these sources of bacteria on food so it doesn't really matter.

Personally I just do not want to eat food that has been contaminated in the ways mentioned above andall the other examples. I do not fancy it and could not eat it.

Ugh!

Revolting, inconsiderate and downright ignorant.

Not in my mouth thank you.

There are more pleasant ways to build up the body's immune system.

[David48]

It's surely missing the point to say that the body adapts to all these sources of bacteria on food so it doesn't really matter.

Personally I just do not want to eat food that has been contaminated in the ways mentioned above andall the other examples. I do not fancy it and could not eat it.

Ugh!

Revolting, inconsiderate and downright ignorant.

Not in my mouth thank you.

There are more pleasant ways to build up the body's immune system.

You do know that Curries were made popular by the English to disguise the taste of rotting meat?

That a cow's carcass is typically aged between 3 - 10 days in a cool room so that the meat becomes more tender.

That chickens are commonly fed a mix of feed which include their own poop, because their protein hasn't been absorbed 100% yet.

How do you think 'mad cow disease' started?

You do know that Farmed Salmon are fed colorants to make their flesh pinker to appeal more to the consumer.

Idle claims ... a nutter?

What chemicals are used to treat farmed salmon?

Throughout their life, from birth to slaughter, farmed salmon are treated with a range of chemicals to protect them from disease and to make them more attractive to consumers. The flesh of wild salmon is naturally pink, because of the food they eat in the wild. Factory-farmed salmon flesh, however, is muddy grey in colour. Most farm salmon are fed a manufactured colourant in their food to make their flesh colour more appealing to consumers.

salmon farm monitor

All Western practices in the food chain.

The list is endless ...

"Revolting, inconsiderate and downright ignorant." ...

"Not in my mouth thank you." ... probably more times then you'd care to realise!

I just get upset when they (in Asia) spray insecticide on the raw meat so that the flies don't land, add formaldehyde to the chickens carcases so they preserve longer and cosmetics to the shellfish so that they maintain their pink flesh longer.

EDIT ... BTW, I didn't write the above to gross anyone out ... just that's it's what happens in the food supply chain all the time.

As strong, robust humans, we develop a resistance to this. Mothers pass this resistance, in part, through their breast milk to us as infants.

Muscles get stronger through strenuous exercise and tearing slightly and, in the process of healing, become stronger.

We get stronger by being exposed, in the natural environment to many the nasties that exist out there and, after being sick, we often develop a resistance and become stronger. I'm not talking cholera or the like ... just the argy bargy of the germ world.

.

[Bikkii]

Been coming to Thailand for years before I moved here and (touch wood) to this day never had food poisoning.

I love a good street cart, dodgy looking rest and buy my meat from the local markets where it sits on a table in the heat covered in flies.

[Kangawallafox]

Everyone has a story ....

Just so you know, food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high,did you know that,very very high.

Well, there you go ... different strokes, different folks.

I live in a broader Thai Family that consists of 8 adults and a variety of children.

None of them, while I've lived there, ever had had food poisoning.

Two of them (kids) got sick once ... but they were swimming in the Klong ... and if you saw what else swam in the Klong ... you never would.

So, I return to the norm ... everyone has a story.

Your mileage (and I don't doubt your experiences for a second) are different to mine.

But, for you to say that ... "Just so you know, food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high, did you know that, very very high." is a touch myopic and more likely pertinent to your personal experiences and not that of the greater Thai population.

...

.

Nothing to do with my personal experience,it's a fact,ask anyone that works in a thai hospital,he'll just google it.

Are you going to sit here and say they are not unhygienic,and then tell me poor hygiene does not make people sick,so far that's exactly what your saying.

[Kangawallafox]

Curry was made as a preservative,not to disguise taste.

I think many here think because they have never been rushed to hospital they have never had dirty food.

I never said that,spending hours on the toilet is a result of poor hygiene,you don't have to be on you death bed to consider it dirty.

However it's these practices that can kill,and as my friend ohn who is a nurse says,does kill in Thailand in large numbers.

[Kangawallafox]

Let's simplify it,do you think cats licking the cooking gear is ok,So far it seems some people think it's ok.

[SOMeTOM]

I live in the boonies between the real thais, and something i noticed, it's when they get sick and need medical attention, they do not try to pin point from where this sickness originated from, it seems that must to be some sort of divine unavoidable occurrence, maybe karma or something, no way it is connected with lack of hygiene/common sense, nor there is any will to do any further investigation...a quick trip to the local clinic and a bag full of any sort of drugs (the legal ones) will do.

Recently our area was flooded, so many fields still have that dirty and stinky brown water stuck there, the local villagers apparently have developed a taste for this wild plant that grow (infest) on the water, more than once i have witnessed them relieving their self with the water on their knees and then carry on picking their smelly (as the sewage) plants.

[David48]

So, I return to the norm ... everyone has a story.

Your mileage (and I don't doubt your experiences for a second) are different to mine.

But, for you to say that ... "Just so you know, food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high, did you know that, very very high." is a touch myopic and more likely pertinent to your personal experiences and not that of the greater Thai population.

Nothing to do with my personal experience,it's a fact,ask anyone that works in a thai hospital,...

Are you going to sit here and say they are not unhygienic,and then tell me poor hygiene does not make people sick,so far that's exactly what your saying.

Mate, no need to twist my words and to support your argument.

"Are you going to sit here and say they are not unhygienic,and then tell me poor hygiene does not make people sick,so far that's exactly what your saying."

... No, that's not what I'm saying.

But, for you to say that ... "Just so you know, food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high, did you know that, very very high." is a touch myopic and more likely pertinent to your personal experiences and not that of the greater Thai population.

You relied with ... "Nothing to do with my personal experience,it's a fact,ask anyone that works in a thai hospital"

... well, I hate to inform you but yes, it's a fact as you so like to put it, sick people go to Hospital ...

You mention Curries ... Curries have evolved from through out the world and take many forms and are cooked for many reasons. One of those reasons was as I described it earlier, as a masking agent to cover the smell of rotting meat.

As my supporting evidence, would you take council from both the News Science organisation and the Journal of Neuroscience in the article Curry Cover-Up Unraveled ...

Dishonest cooks have used herbs and spices to mask the odor of spoiling food for thousands of years. Now scientists studying how odors interact in the brain may have discovered the reason certain spices are especially effective at covering up the stench of rotting meat.

Kangawallafox, mate, no need to make this personal as you try and do in some posts. If you have a position on a subject, and my experience is different, I'll do my darnedest in my rebuttal to be polite, and, if I have supporting evidence, present that.

.

[Kangawallafox]

So, I return to the norm ... everyone has a story.

Your mileage (and I don't doubt your experiences for a second) are different to mine.

But, for you to say that ... "Just so you know, food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high, did you know that, very very high." is a touch myopic and more likely pertinent to your personal experiences and not that of the greater Thai population.

Nothing to do with my personal experience,it's a fact,ask anyone that works in a thai hospital,...

Are you going to sit here and say they are not unhygienic,and then tell me poor hygiene does not make people sick,so far that's exactly what your saying.

Mate, no need to twist my words and to support your argument.

"Are you going to sit here and say they are not unhygienic,and then tell me poor hygiene does not make people sick,so far that's exactly what your saying."

... No, that's not what I'm saying.

But, for you to say that ... "Just so you know, food poisoning amongst the locals is extremely high, did you know that, very very high." is a touch myopic and more likely pertinent to your personal experiences and not that of the greater Thai population.

You relied with ... "Nothing to do with my personal experience,it's a fact,ask anyone that works in a thai hospital"

... well, I hate to inform you but yes, it's a fact as you so like to put it, sick people go to Hospital ...

You mention Curries ... Curries have evolved from through out the world and take many forms and are cooked for many reasons. One of those reasons was as I described it earlier, as a masking agent to cover the smell of rotting meat.

As my supporting evidence, would you take council from both the News Science organisation and the Journal of Neuroscience in the article Curry Cover-Up Unraveled ...

Dishonest cooks have used herbs and spices to mask the odor of spoiling food for thousands of years. Now scientists studying how odors interact in the brain may have discovered the reason certain spices are especially effective at covering up the stench of rotting meat.

Kangawallafox, mate, no need to make this personal as you try and do in some posts. If you have a position on a subject, and my experience is different, I'll do my darnedest in my rebuttal to be polite, and, if I have supporting evidence, present that.

.

Ok,so you want me to present evidence that being unhygienic makes people sick,I'm pretty sure that's been proven already worldwide.

Just answer the question,do you believe their handling of food is ok.

[meatboy]

I know a very nice restaurant.

Wash the dishes pans etc,in the river downstream from the toilet.

Wash and go,or go and wash.

ah but was there any washing up liquid there?

i expect they use the same water for cooking