Masterchef bosses have been criticised by viewers for allowing contestants to get away with 'stomach-turning' hygiene standards on the show.
Viewers of the hit BBC1 programme, hosted by judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace, say they have been turned off the cookery contest by the contestants' kitchen habits.
In one episode, viewers watched as a contestant's sweat dripped into a sauce, while in another a female chef's long hair was seen dangling over her lamb tagine.
Masterchef bosses have been criticised after viewers complained about a contestant's sweat dripping into a sauce. Elsewhere, a female chef's long hair was seen dangling over her lamb tagine
Masterchef judge John Torode speaks to the contestants during one of the episodes
Other turn-offs included contestants wearing jewellery and nail varnish in the kitchen and cross-contamination of food.
Viewers have posted on a BBC message board complaning about the standards of hygiene.
One poster on the BBC Points of View online messageboard wrote: 'When you are cooking food for other people I think that hygiene standards need to be some what higher!
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'Rings and nail varnish on fingers and greasy hair falling into food is not really nice and I often wonder how Gregg and John can so happily tuck into it when they must surely have seen how the food is prepared. It puts me off yuuk!'
Another viewer wrote: 'Does the production team know anything about food hygiene? John Torode certainly does that's for sure but the contestants certainly don't!
'I just watched the episode aired on the 17th (April) and I am concerned about the mass catering challenge.
One viewer asked how Masterchef judges Gregg Wallace (left) and John Torode (right) were able to 'tuck into' the food when they had seen how it had been prepared
'One of the contestant's hair was almost being stirred into her lamb dish whilst the other contestants were using the first chopping boards they came to........ Red for vegetables.....Yellow boards for fruit?
'Picky picky but I teach this for a living and I teach about cross contamination which includes colour coded chopping boards.
'Does the BBC care what it's teaching the public or are they only concerned with recipes.'
Another viewer responded: 'I'm with you! One episode saw someone drip sweat into a sauce, barf!
'Also the wearing of rings and/or nail varnish also turns my stomach. When I was a gel strictly hair tied back, no jewellery and if we had nail varnish on, off to the science lab to get it taken off with acetone.'
Viewers said they were disgusted by an episode in which the cooks were sent to Heathrow Airport to prepare lunch for 200 employees.
During the challenge 27-year-old contestant Shivi Ramatour's long hair was seen spilling out of her chef's hat as she stirred her lamb tagine.
Dozens of viewers took to Twitter to point out the incident.
One viewer tweeted: 'Why are none of these chefs in #masterchef wearing hairnets in the professional kitchen? I hope the customers like beef a la hair.'
Another tweeted: 'Erm, will the posh hot girl on #masterchef please stop flicking her hair into the food!!'
The contestants' failure to use the correct chopping boards during this episode was also a hot topic on Twitter.
One viewer tweeted: 'Does #masterchef not know the environmental health laws? Hair must be totally covered in the kitchen, the boards have colours for a reason. #Appalling hygiene examples peppers on a red board is a no-no also two young ladies whose hair hanging over the food. Bad bad bad.'
Viewers of the show have raised concerns over issues including cross-contamination and the failure of bosses to provide chef whites for the contestants during the studio-based challenges Meanwhile, other frustrated viewe