Aspectos higiênico-sanitários dos serviços de alimentação dos estabelecimentos públicos de Ensino fundamental de Maceió

Abstract

Food and nutrition are fundamental requirements for the promotion and protection of the health and welfare of the human being. Eating quality is a right of every individual. The Human Right to Adequate Food, among various aspects, there is the issue of food safety, because, to be healthy, the food must be free of chemical, physical and biological contaminants and therefore does not constitute a risk of harm to the health of those Who consume it, especially children, by being part of the group most vulnerable to foodborne illness. In order to ensure the Human Right to Adequate Food of children enrolled in public schools, among several other programs and actions, Brazil develops National School Feeding Program. In These institutions there are food service structured to offer a meal that meets the nutritional needs of students during activities in school. Of course, in addition to the nutritional aspects, this food should be safe from the point of view of hygienic-sanitary. However, in the city of Maceió, no study had been conducted to evaluate the service for that assumption. The present study aimed to assess, in the context of a dissertation, hygienic-sanitary aspects of food service of public establishments of primary education of Maceió. The dissertation is organized in two parts. The first is a review of the literature addressing the Human Right to Adequate Food and Food and Nutrition Security, with an emphasis on safety and best practices in food production, National School Feeding Program, hygienic sanitary conditions of food service in Brazilian public schools and the role of the nutritionist in the context of the National School Feeding Program. The second part presents an original article which includes the results from a cross-sectional study involving probabilistic sample of 27 schools drawn from a universe of 121 accommodation. Sanitary hygienic aspects assessment was carried out through the application of a checklist based on RDC 216/04 National Health Surveillance Agency, from which the food service were classified into five levels of fitness: critical, unsatisfactory, regular, satisfying and excellent. The research was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Alagoas (case no 0172992011-43). It was found that 37.0% and 63.0% of food service were classified in the categories "criticism" and "unsatisfactory", respectively. The major non-compliances related to building and facilities, waste management, food handlers and the preparation and exposure of food. The results show that the public schools of Maceió food service do not meet hygienic-sanitary safety criteria established by current legislation, condition that exposes children to the risk of disease. This situation constitutes a violation to demand urgent measures and Human Right to Adequate Food on the part of policymakers and professionals involved with the issue. Are recommended investments in infrastructure, human resources training and availability of qualified professionals to ensure the hygienic-sanitary quality of foods consumed by the clientele of the National School Feeding Program.