Shawn so how do you clean a wood cutting board on the boat. No varnish on it right? Oil. ? Do you think most boaters clean the boars the right way?
Not to speak for Shawn, but I clean my boars by tying a line around a hind leg and dragging them behind the boat. *grin*
For wooden cutting boards I have a different protocol.
First I have clearly different bits for heavy cleaning (sponges, boiled and dried or replaced periodically), counter cleaning (rags and towels), and drying (rags and towels). At sea, drying towels become cleaning towels after a couple of days.
Second I maintain different cutting surfaces for meat and veg. I use a half-sheet pan as a cofferdam over the veg board on my cooker to place the meat board on. I grouse about the extra cleaning after a meal but that's the way it goes.
Third, even on delivery I carry a squirt bottle to put diluted vinegar in. As noted bacteria grow exponentially. After cleaning cutting surfaces with soap and hot water and wiping water off (not necessarily completely dry) I spray with the vinegar solution and let dry.
Even on delivery with a good size crew I don't have production cooking to do. There is plenty of time for cutting boards to dry before next use.
I have found very few people understand how to handle food or clean and sanitize properly at home. Very few know cook o, reheat temps to kill bacteria. Most cool down or thaw improperly. Lots of cross contamination issues. People do crazy things like leave opened peanut butter and butter unrefrigerated. Cool pots of soup on the counter. Don't date or follow dates of food in the reefer. Most don't use gloves when preparing foods. Most don't wash clean and sanitize when preparing or using cutting boards through the process of switching tasks.
I can't compete with others in this thread for certifications. I do have a background in science and engineering and can think and consider issues in a structured fashion. I've also worked in government long enough to know that sometimes regulation is based on perception as much as science.
I don't cook with gloves on.
I do sail with an insertion thermometer (actually three on my own boat, one on delivery).
I do cool things on the stove top or in the sink. I can't afford the amp-hours by sticking something hot in the fridge to cool, and don't want to risk raising the temperature in there of other items. Leftovers have to be brought back to temp; that deals with bacteria but as noted not the potential toxins. That is Russian roulette. That no one has gotten sick on my watch is not relevant. The numbers aren't big enough to be statistically significant.
Most dates on food are "best if used by" dates for flavor not "you'll die if you eat this after" dates.
On board with limited cooled space I keep eggs in the bilge or low storage. I keep peanut butter in a locker. Butter is in the cooler or reefer if I don't have a butter bell. I get mayonnaise (when I don't make it from scratch) and mustard in squeeze bottles to avoid contamination from utensils (I'd get peanut butter the same way if I could find it). Same with ketchup.
The problem with squeeze bottles is contribution to the waste stream in places that don't support recycling. It pains me. Still life is a compromise.
In no way should anything I describe be considered as being offered as "the answer." I'm not qualified to make such statements. I am simply an engineer who loves to cook and does my research. I have made my own risk management decisions applied to the environment on a boat.
I will say that on delivery the boats I move always get turned back to the owner with much cleaner galleys than when I took possession. *grin*