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THE BRONG Ahafo Zonal Officer of the Food and Drugs Board (FDB), Matthew Gyang Nkum, has warned caterers to avoid buying food products that are sold on the open market at reduced prices. He said they should particularly steer clear of �buy one, get one free� goods since most of them have either expired or are very close to their expiry dates. �If you are caught patronizing such products or selling such products you will be arrested and prosecuted,� Mr. Nkum warned. Mr. Nkum was speaking at a workshop organized by the FDB for caterers, hoteliers, restaurant and guest houses operators as well as food vendors in the Sunyani municipality. He called on the owners of hotels and restaurants and food vendors to organize training for their staff twice every year about food safety. According to him, the training will help their staff become more safety-conscious while on duty thereby keeping the food protected for their customers. He said the purpose of the workshop is to educate the caterers on basic food and personal hygiene in an effort to reduce food poisoning. He advised the caterers to always be careful of the food they buy from the market especially those that are already packaged. He also showed them how to examine labels on packaged food products to determine their expiry dates. �No person shall manufacture any food for sale unless the food is manufactured under supervision of a person with appropriate knowledge and qualification who can ensure the purity and wholesomeness of the food,� he added. Mr. Nkum warned them that any person that sells, prepares packages or displays for sale any food under unsanitary conditions, commits an offence and will be arrested accordingly. The FDB zonal officer also warned restaurant owners to avoid giving out food for free to promote their restaurants. He called on caterers to be careful of the inscriptions on the products that they buy from the market and asked them not to buy products that do not have English inscriptions. On personal hygiene, Mr. Nkum urged the caterers to avoid wearing long or artificial nails as they could easily harbor disease-causing bacteria.