Monday, March 03, 2008 Street food anyone? By Cielo Borja
BAGUIO City, Home of everything cheap! From "ukay-ukay", to silver wares, to cheap vegetables in the Hangar Market. Let's face it, most Filipinos love cheap thrills. Who doesn't? It is like getting more than what your money's worth.
Although Baguio is already a highly urbanized and it has countless restaurants, diners, fast food and barbeque grills to choose from, there's a particular common ground where you can find students, "tambays", and professionals alike. "Hanging out", or rather "standing up" (with sticks on their hands). Yup! I'm talking about the "tusok-tusok" stands!
Everywhere you go, you can always find street food, for only P5 for a stick, you can already have a bite or two of the ever famous "isaw" (chicken intestines) not bad considering the current state of the economy nowadays, right? And isaw is not the only delicacy in their street food menu, they also have the yummy "gulong" (pig intestines) for only P5 per stick, the "odoc" (one day old chick) for only P6 per piece, "betamax" (boiled coagulated pig's blood) for only P3 per stick, "kwek-kwek" (four quail eggs dunked in flour and orangey substance), "nuggets" (chicken skin covered in flour), "squid balls", "chicken balls", and "kikiam" for only P2 per piece, and the cheapest of them all, the balls of all balls, the street food pioneer in the Philippines, fish balls! For only 50 centavos a piece.
What a treat! You might say, right? Until you hear the downside.
Exhibit one, the "sawsawan" (sauce and or dip). Have you ever thought about how many patriotic customers have dunked their sometimes already bitten pieces of isaw in there? Or how long that "sawsawan" that been in the bottle, one day? One week? Or until the bottle's already empty. Of course you'll never know, because you're more focused about the taste of that yummy treat that you're having.
Now, what are the typical cases you can get from sharing sawsawan (sharing saliva in particular) with others? First is the contamination, bacteria, food poisoning, hepatitis B, hepatitis A, salmonella, and E.coli -- types of bacteria classified as "harmful micro-organisms."
Contamination may also occur with improper handling of food, unsanitary utensils, or unhygienic surroundings, just like the stalls we have along the streets of Baguio City.
It is obvious food sold in the streets are unsafe, it was only last year the City Health Services Office (CHSO) was asked to give a list of food outlets with sanitation permits. Yet until now some of the outlets do not have permit yet, and worse, some aren't even aware there is a need for permit in able to sell in the streets.
Exhibit two, you might say the chicken nuggets you're having is so tasty and a little crunchy, well, it's because you're eating a food that has already accumulated a whole days worth of GRIME, SMOKE, and DUST! Yum!!! Given that street foods are grilled, or dipped in boiling oil, in the study and observation of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), it was reported that "even freshly cooked food was contaminated with these pathogenic micro-organisms... the duration of the cooking and temperature was not enough to destroy all pathogenic micro-organisms."
Exhibit three, notice the vendors do not even use gloves while cooking? Well, it is not mandatory considering they are street vendors, but do you notice the hands they use for handling your food are the same hands which gives your change back? Well, just a thought... speaking about sanitary reasons, aren't they supposed to wear hairnets too?
City Councilor Elaine Sembrano is very particular with the issuance of sanitary permit, not only for the legality of the stalls but she is more concerned about the health of the people who patronize street food.
The Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) now offers food and nutrition training courses as part of its efforts to strengthen its research utilization and to enhance the F&N manpower capability in the country.
Seven F&N training courses prepared for this year are more focused and need-based, which came out of training needs analysis done by FNRI training staff early this year among FNRI clients and stakeholders. And they also offer a course for the street vendors, the "Street food Vendors' Training on Nutrition and Food Safety."
The course description is about customized training on street food vending. It covers the principles of basic nutrition, techniques in meal management, food cost, and food sanitation and hygiene. Their intended participants are the street food vendors and operators.
Permits, hairnets, gloves, nutrition training course, that's a lot to ask considering the food they are selling is so cheap like it is almost free! Or maybe, just maybe, the customers are just getting what their money's worth? Think about it.
While interviewing one stall owner along Magsaysay Road, he said his earnings are not too bad but still do not compensate with the standard of living nowadays, and that sometimes what is left from his stall serves as his family's dinner.
Another stall owner says he earns a lot, and because his stall is near a university, he said he sells everything in one day and sometimes even before the day ends.
A stall near the paradahan (jeep terminal) said his earning's doing as good as well, since a lot of passenger loves munching while waiting for the next ride.
Neither of the three said they pay taxes nor they have sanitary permits, and some did not know about the city rule, and when asked about the plan of the DOST about the street vendors being abolished, they said that would be a sad news for them but they concluded that as long as its not implemented yet, they still have to be in the streets, beside their stalls, selling cheap thrills to everyone.
