During the week, food safety officers will be raising awareness of food hygiene by visiting schools and businesses. The aim is to show how food should be kept safe from the time it is bought until it is eaten.

Members of the public can also have a chance to meet the team at Stratford Shopping Centre on Wednesday, June 11.

As well as information and advice, shoppers can learn how not to prepare food, have a go in "The Frightful Fridge" and enter the "How safe is your food?" competition.

Around 5.5 million people a year suffer from some form of food poisoning. In the UK there were almost 80,000 reported cases of food poisoning in 2006.

Although these figures are down on those of a decade ago, many more cases go unreported.

The food safety team is in the frontline in protecting the borough against the dangers of illnesses relating to food.

The theme for this year's Food Safety Week is Germ Watch. This focuses on raising awareness of the 4 Cs for Food Safety:

• Cleanliness: Keep your kitchen, equipment and work surfaces clean
• Cooking: Make sure food is properly cooked before eating
• Chilling: Keep perishable foods cold until you cook or eat them
• Cross-contamination: Don't let harmful germs spread around your kitchen.

The key food safety message is:

• Keep it hot, keep it cold or don't keep it at all
• Keep it clean and Keep it safe