THE case of the food poisoning outbreak linked to Prima Deli last year highlighted the importance of hygiene in processing food.

But there is another area that may have been missed.

It is no use having hygienic processes in the preparation of the baked goods, only to display the finished products in unhygienic or exposed containers.

I have seen many bakery chains displaying their goods in containers with no retractable covers.

Even trays that customers use to select the items are placed too close to the floor.

Once, I was about to buy some buns at a well-known bakery chain when I noticed that a cleaner was dusting the doormat at the main door.

The wind was blowing towards the bakery where all the buns were displayed on the shelves without covers.

I did not buy anything from there in the end.

More recently, I have noticed birds flying into another outlet of the same bakery, trying to get at the exposed buns.

I could almost see the dust generated by the flapping wings of the birds against the morning sun.

Or imagine that a child who is there with his parents may be having a bad cold and is sneezing incessantly, while two of his other siblings are hyperactive, and poking the buns and getting a taste of the cream with their fingers.

The buns we buy will end up having extra ingredients, whether it is dust, germs or viruses.

My point is that proper hygiene must be practised through the whole process, right down to the bags used to pack the food.

I hope the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority or the relevant authority look into this for public interest.

Mr Victor Ho Soo Yit