Abstract

Author(s): Pessoa Magalhães, Júlia1; Da Silva Oliveira, Marina1; Azevedo Magalhães Monteiro, Marlene2; Schaefer, Marco Antônio3; Vieira Teixeira Garcia, Maria Aparecida4

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the risks of cross-contamination of gluten in a university restaurant with preparations for celiac individuals.

Methods: This is an observational descriptive study carried out between the months of September and November 2014 in a university restaurant in the city of Belo HorizonteMG, Brazil. A checklist was elaborated, based on literature related to celiac disease and on Resolution 275, issued on October 2002, to identify the risks of cross contamination by gluten according to the production flow adopted at the restaurant. The analysis was performed in a qualitative manner.

Results and Discussion: Eight critical points were identified, ranging from the reception of raw material to the meal distribution at the restaurant’s dining hall. The two criticapoints identified in the checklist as susceptible to change were in the warehouse. The remaining items have no possibility of changes in the short term.

Conclusions: Despite the restaurant food handlers have been trained previously to make preparations gluten-free, the risk of contamination by this protein are great. In this scenario it is necessary strict control over the production line in a restaurant that distinguishes preparations with and without gluten or choose to make preparations in another physical space to ensure the safety of food.