Saturday, August 30, 2008

Shelter must change food service

Argen Duncan El Defensor Chieftain Reporter, Aduncan@dchieftain.com

Day shelter Puerto Seguro Inc. is making difficult changes in its food service to comply with state law and needs help from the community.

Because state law forbids serving the public food that has not prepared in a certified kitchen, the shelter is buying meals instead of accepting hot, cooked food from volunteers. If the situation continues, it could strain Puerto Seguro finances.

"We're going to come out of it OK," said shelter manager Duane Baker. "It's going to take some time and effort."

Baker said the hot food must be pre-cooked in certified kitchens. Shelter workers are serving canned soup and sandwiches with deli meat or peanut butter.

Puerto Seguro needs donations of canned soup and lunchmeat.

"That's going to hurt us if we have to buy meals every day," Baker said.

Donations of money or pre-cooked food directly from a store or restaurant are also welcome.

Also, he is hoping for donations of prepared food from restaurants.

Andrew Wilson, New Mexico Environment Department food specialist for Socorro's district, said food cooked at home may or may not have been prepared in a clean kitchen. Accepting meals made anywhere increases the chances of food-borne illness.

Wilson said the shelter could accept cooked food delivered directly from a certified kitchen, such as one at a restaurant or deli. However, he discouraged anyone from donating or serving such food that had been held overnight.

"The more things you do with the food, the more chance of introducing a contaminant that could cause food-borne illness," Wilson said.

Only food made on site and stored in an approved facility should be served after being held overnight, he said.

Wilson recommended that people donate non-perishable food or uncooked produce to the shelter. He also suggested quality control to remove dented cans, spoiled produce and more.

As for perishable food such as raw meat, Wilson said even the donor might not know if it had been stored properly. He discouraged such donations.

Baker intends to convert the shelter kitchen into a facility that meets requirements for a certified kitchen.

To do so, he needs commercial appliances, which are more durable and powerful than their domestic counterparts.

The list includes microwaves, refrigerators, a stove, a deep three-tray sink, a hand-washing sink, a fire suppression system and new flooring.

"It's just going to take some pounding the street to find some of this stuff," Baker said.

The shelter already has a vegetable sink and a ventilation hood, and Baker doesn't believe proper plumbing will be a problem.

Temporary food vendors can get special permits to serve from a kitchen without the commercial equipment normally required for approval, Wilson said. However, they have more restrictions.

Baker doesn't know how long the kitchen conversion will take. He has two months to install sinks that meet regulations for dishwashing, but expects to finish the job in one month.

So far, as of Wednesday, the shelter has had just enough food for clients every day it opened. It opens on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.

"We've been blessed," Baker said.

However, Puerto Seguro is running very low on groceries to give to clients to help them through the week. Baker hasn't placed an order with Roadrunner Food Bank because he doesn't know whether he will have to buy food to serve at the shelter, which will prevent him from buying take-away groceries.

The manager called the changes a blessing in disguise because he said shelter representatives would have "some teeth behind the bark" when requesting funds at the Legislature in January.

Bakers said he appreciates Jerry Ford of the state Environment Department's Socorro field office, who is helping Puerto Seguro stay open without breaking laws.

"He realizes what our mission is, and he realizes if we can't feed people, why even open the doors in the first place?" Baker said.

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