What practice is essential for preventing cross-contamination in food service environments?

Using separate cutting boards is indeed a vital practice for preventing cross-contamination in food service environments. Separate cutting boards for different types of food, particularly raw meats and ready-to-eat foods, help to mitigate the risk of harmful microorganisms being transferred from one food item to another. This practice is essential because raw meats can harbor pathogens like Salmonella and E. coli that can infect other foods if they come into contact with surfaces that have not been properly sanitized.

The other options, while important for food safety, do not specifically focus on cross-contamination in the same direct manner. Washing hands frequently is crucial for overall hygiene and preventing the spread of germs but is a separate aspect of food safety. Storing raw meats at the bottom of the refrigerator is important to prevent juices from dripping onto other foods; however, this practice by itself does not address cross-contamination during food preparation. Therefore, while all the practices mentioned contribute to food safety as a whole, using separate cutting boards directly targets the risk of cross-contamination in a manner that is easily implemented and highly effective in a food service setting.