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Stay healthy
at the fair
BROOKLYN - The Northeast District Department of Health (NDDH) is ready for another busy fair season and offers fairgoers simple advice to enjoy the Brooklyn and Woodstock Fairs in a safe and healthy manner.
“Frequent hand washing and proper food handling are two of the best ways to insure a healthy fair experience,” commented NDDH Registered Sanitarian Maureen Marcoux. “The fairs have a long standing tradition of providing fairgoers with plenty of fun, festivities, agricultural and animal exhibits, and food. NDDH partners with fair management to assure that fairgoers have every chance to avoid illness.”
This year, five NDDH sanitarians will cover plenty of acreage at both fairs, inspecting over 60 food sites at the Brooklyn Fair and over 110 sites at the Woodstock Fair. Food vendors and their employees are also required to have a Food Awareness and Safety Class (FAST) certificate and may participate in a FAST Class sponsored by NDDH at both fairs.
“NDDH inspects all food vendors at the fairs to assure compliance with the public health code,” said Sue Starkey, NDDH Director of Health. “A temporary food event that brings hundreds of thousands of people to an area within a short time frame poses a number of challenges. We all have a responsibility for our own health and safety. Fairgoers must realize that they become food handlers when they purchase a food product. They too, should handle food properly so they reduce their risk of food borne illness.”
In addition to food safety, NDDH encourages frequent hand washing or the use of hand sanitizers if hand washing facilities are unavailable. A 2005 grant allowed NDDH to purchase fifteen hand-sanitizing dispensers – all of which continue to be used at various locations throughout both fairs.
“The combination of thousands of people, food, animals and limited hand-washing facilities at the fairs creates a higher risk for the potential of bacterial and viral infection,” said Starkey. “These infections can occur through food borne illness or by interaction with farm animals. By making these hand-sanitizing stations available and increasing awareness of proper hand washing techniques, we hope to reduce the risk of illness for fairgoers.”
NDDH also produces laminated posters outlining proper hand-washing and food handling techniques that are displayed in restroom facilities, animal exhibit areas, and on food vendor booths.
“We’re relying on fairgoers to practice a simple childhood message that we all learned early on,” said Linda Colangelo, NDDH Education and Communications Coordinator. “Wash your hands before eating or after going to the bathroom. We’ve expanded this message at the fairs to include this practice after going on rides, playing games, and visiting animal exhibits. Food and drink should not be brought into the barns and parents should not allow small children to put their hands or other objects (such as pacifiers) in their mouths while visiting with animals. Fun at the fair starts with these simple health tips.”
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