How to cover cuts and wounds when handling food in Australia: blue waterproof detectable dressings, gloves over dressings, and when to stay off food handling.
Cuts, grazes and wounds on the hands or arms must be completely covered with a clean, waterproof, brightly coloured (usually blue) detectable dressing before you handle food. Wear a single-use glove over any dressing on a hand. If a wound is weeping, infected or can't be reliably covered, you should stop handling ready-to-eat food and tell your supervisor. This protects food from bacteria and from a lost dressing becoming a physical hazard. Key takeaways: Completely cover any cut, graze or wound with a clean, waterproof, brightly coloured (blue) detectable dressing before handling food.. Wear a single-use glove over a dressing on the hand, and change the glove whenever it is torn or contaminated.. Blue is used because it does not occur naturally in most foods, so a lost dressing is easier to spot; a metal-detectable strip adds another safeguard.. Weeping, infected or poorly located wounds may mean you should not handle ready-to-eat food until they heal or can be reliably covered.. Report cuts, wounds and any lost dressings to your supervisor and record them where your business requires it.. Dressing and glove quick reference: Situation, What to do. Minor cut on hand — Clean, apply blue waterproof detectable dressing, cover with single-use glove. Cut on forearm — Clean and apply blue waterproof detectable dressing, ensure fully sealed. Dressing comes loose or is lost — Replace it; discard any food that may be affected; tell supervisor. Weeping or infected wound — Do not handle ready-to-eat food; report and seek reassignment. Glove torn or contaminated — Remove, wash and dry hands, apply a fresh glove. Why covering cuts matters in a food business Open cuts and wounds are a direct route for harmful bacteria to reach food. Skin lesions, and especially infected ones, can carry Staphylococcus aureus, which produces a toxin that ordinary cooking and reheating do not destroy. A cut also creates two hazards at once: a microbiological hazard from bacteria on and around the wound, and a physical hazard if an uncovered or poorly stuck dressing falls into food. The Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (Standard 3.2.2) requires food handlers to take all practicable measures to prevent unnecessary contact with ready-to-eat food and to prevent bodily matter and dressings from contaminating food. Covering wounds properly is one of the simplest, highest-value personal hygiene controls in any kitchen. Bacteria from wounds can multiply on food and cause foodborne illness.. Some toxins (such as Staph enterotoxin) survive cooking, so prevention at the source matters.. A lost dressing is a foreign-object complaint waiting to happen.. Covering wounds is a legal expectation of the Food Standards Code, not just good practice.. What a compliant dressing looks like The dressing you use in a food area is different from the one in a home first-aid kit. It should be clean, waterproof so it stays put and keeps moisture out, and brightly coloured, almost always blue. Blue is chosen because it rarely occurs naturally in food, so a dressing that comes loose stands out against most products. Many food-grade dressings also contain a thin metal-detectable strip, so businesses that run metal detection on packaged product get a second line of defence. Keep a supply of blue detectable dressings in your first-aid kit and check they are stocked during routine kit checks. Standard fabric or skin-tone plasters are not suitable for food handling because they are hard to see if lost. Waterproof, so it withstands hand washing and food moisture.. Brightly coloured (blue) for visibility if it detaches.. Metal-detectable where practical, for businesses using metal detection.. Clean and intact, applied to clean, dry skin.. Sized to cover the whole wound with a margin, not overlapping the edges poorly.. Gloves over dressings on the hands A dressing on the hand should be covered by a clean, single-use glove whenever you handle food. The glove holds the dressing in place, adds a barrier if the dressing loosens, and reduces the chance of a bacteria transfer from the wound. Choose a glove that fits, put it on over clean, washed hands, and treat it as single-use: change it if it tears, if it touches something contaminated, between raw and ready-to-eat tasks, and whenever you would normally wash your hands. Gloves are not a substitute for hand washing. Wash and dry your hands before gloving up, and again after removing gloves. On the arms or other areas not covered by a glove, make sure the waterproof dressing is fully sealed and re-check it through your shift. Wash and dry hands, then apply a clean single-use glove over the hand dressing.. Change the glove if it is torn, dirty, or you switch between raw and ready-to-eat food.. Never reuse single-use gloves or top up hand hygiene with gloves alone.. For wounds on arms or elsewhere, ensure the waterproof dressing is fully sealed.. When you should stay off food handling Covering a wound is not always enough. If a cut is weeping, badly infected, or in a spot that a dressing and glove cannot reliably cover, you should not handle ready-to-eat food until it heals or can be properly protected. The Food Standards Code also requires food handlers who know they are suffering from a foodborne-illness symptom or condition, or who are carrying a food-borne pathogen, to report it and not handle food if there is a real risk of contamination. An infected wound with pus or spreading redness falls into this category. Speak to your supervisor, who may reassign you to non-food tasks such as cleaning, dishwashing away from clean crockery, or front-of-house duties that do not involve handling unwrapped food. Weeping or discharging wounds should not be near unwrapped food.. Infected wounds (pus, spreading redness, heat) mean stop and report.. Wounds that cannot be reliably covered (some fingertip or knuckle cuts) may need reassignment.. Your supervisor can move you to non-food duties until the wound settles.. Reporting, first aid and record-keeping Treat every cut as a reportable event, however minor. Stop the task, clean and cover the wound, and tell your supervisor so the food you were working with can be assessed. If any food may have been contaminated by blood or a lost dressing, it should be discarded, not served. Businesses with a documented food safety program or first-aid procedures often record injuries in a first-aid or incident log; follow whatever your workplace requires. Keeping a stocked, food-appropriate first-aid kit, including blue detectable dressings and single-use gloves, is part of being ready. A quick, honest report protects customers and protects you if a complaint is later investigated. Clean and cover the wound, then tell your supervisor promptly.. Discard any food that may have contacted blood or a lost dressing.. Record the injury where your workplace or food safety program requires it.. Keep the first-aid kit stocked with blue detectable dressings and gloves.. Building it into everyday hygiene Covering cuts sits alongside your other personal hygiene basics: thorough hand washing, clean outer clothing, tying back hair, and keeping fingernails short and clean. Make blue dressings and gloves visible and easy to reach so staff use them without hesitation. Include wound-covering in induction training and in your regular refreshers, and remind staff that reporting a cut is expected, never a nuisance. Managers and food safety supervisors should check dressings are being used correctly during routine walk-throughs, and confirm the first-aid kit is stocked. Small, consistent habits like these are what auditors and council environmental health officers look for, and what keeps customers safe day to day. Position dressings and gloves within easy reach of prep areas.. Cover wound management in induction and refresher training.. Include dressing checks in supervisor walk-throughs.. Reinforce that reporting a cut is expected and welcomed.. Checklist: Blue waterproof detectable dressings stocked in the first-aid kit. Single-use gloves available near prep areas. All visible cuts and grazes covered before handling food. Gloves worn over hand dressings and changed when needed. Cuts and lost dressings reported to a supervisor. Affected food discarded, not served. Injuries recorded where the workplace requires it. Common mistakes: Using skin-tone or fabric plasters that are impossible to spot if they fall into food. Covering a hand dressing but skipping the glove over it. Continuing to handle ready-to-eat food with a weeping or infected wound. Treating gloves as a replacement for hand washing rather than an extra barrier. Not reporting a lost dressing, so contaminated food is served. Letting the first-aid kit run out of blue detectable dressings.
How to cover a cut before handling food
As soon as you notice a cut or graze, stop handling food and move away from open product and prep surfaces to deal with it.
Wash the wound and your hands with soap and running water, then dry with a single-use paper towel. Follow your workplace first-aid guidance for anything beyond a minor cut.
Cover the whole wound with a clean, waterproof, brightly coloured (blue) detectable dressing, pressing the edges down so it is fully sealed against clean, dry skin.
If the dressing is on a hand, wash and dry your hands again and pull a clean single-use glove over the dressing so it is held firmly in place.
Report the cut so the food you were handling can be assessed and any affected product discarded, and so the injury can be recorded if your workplace requires it.
Check the dressing and glove regularly. Replace them if they loosen, tear, get wet or dirty, or when you switch between raw and ready-to-eat tasks.
Frequently asked questions
Why do food businesses use blue plasters?
Blue is used because it almost never occurs naturally in food, so if a dressing comes loose it stands out and is far easier to spot before it reaches a customer. Many blue food-grade dressings also include a metal-detectable strip, giving businesses that use metal detection a second safeguard against a lost dressing ending up in product.
Do I need a glove over a plaster on my hand?
Yes. When handling food, cover a dressing on your hand with a clean single-use glove. The glove keeps the dressing in place, adds a barrier if it loosens, and reduces bacteria transfer from the wound. Wash and dry your hands before gloving up, and change the glove if it tears, gets dirty, or you move between raw and ready-to-eat tasks.
Can I handle food with an infected cut?
No. A weeping or infected wound, showing pus, spreading redness or heat, should not be near ready-to-eat food. Under the Food Standards Code you should report conditions that could contaminate food and stay off food handling if there is a real risk. Tell your supervisor, who can reassign you to non-food duties until it heals or can be reliably covered.
What should I do if a dressing falls off into food?
Stop immediately, remove and replace the dressing, and discard any food that may have contacted it or blood. Do not serve product you are unsure about. Tell your supervisor so the incident can be assessed and recorded if your workplace requires it. Then wash your hands, re-cover the wound and glove up before returning to food handling.
Are ordinary waterproof plasters acceptable?
A dressing must be clean, waterproof and completely cover the wound, but for food handling it should also be brightly coloured, usually blue, and ideally detectable. Standard skin-tone or fabric plasters are hard to see if they come loose, so they are not suitable. Keep proper blue detectable dressings in your first-aid kit and use them for any cut before handling food.