How to ensure your Restaurant is Serving Safe Food
Posted on July 16, 2008
Filed Under Food |
Lately, the news has been full of horror stories about food poisoning. Many food poisoning cases have been linked to food served at restaurants. Wherever your restaurant may be, safety regulations are in place to protect the health of diners. Victoria, Australia is no exception to this rule.
In many cases of food poisoning, Salmonella is the culprit. Raw poultry and eggs are generally the source of this bacterium in foods, but this bacterium can also be carried by contamination from faeces as well as pet reptiles.
To prevent food poisoning occurring due to salmonella contamination, two steps can be taken. First, always thoroughly cook food, this will kill the bacteria. Second, regular hand washing before, during and after cooking will stop the transmission of this bacterium.
Escherichia coli, more commonly known as E-coli can cause severe illness and even fatalities in some cases. E-coli is naturally occurring in the human body and in some foods - but other strains can kill. E-coli bacteria make harmful substances which cause its symptoms, which include watery or bloody diarrhea. The methods of preventing E-coli are much the same as those for preventing the spread of salmonella - thorough cooking and hand washing. Washing one’s hands should become a habit for anyone who works in a kitchen, as this can prevent food poisoning. Remember, you pick up everything with your hands; including germs!
With all of the stories about food poisoning in the news, it’s understandable that some people are a little nervous about dining out. To make sure that your establishment keeps your customers safe from the risk of infection, be sure to follow the HACCP principles. HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points and is a set of principles designed to make sure that foods prepared for people to eat are safe. Many of these regulations are simply common sense, such as putting milk back into the refrigerator after use or dating items before freezing.
Running a restaurant kitchen requires that you stay on top of a lot of different things. If you’ve got employees whom you supervise, you must ensure they are up to speed on HACCP principles and adhere to them. You don’t want all of the work you’ve put into your restaurant to be ruined by one mistake made out of ignorance of the HACCP principles.
A good way to market your business is having a HACCP certified kitchen. Any certifications or stickers you have received from health authorities should be posted where your customers can easily see them. You can let them know in this way that your restaurant has a clean kitchen and they can dine without worry. Your customers will then know that your kitchen has nothing to hide and the food that you serve them is wholesome and can be enjoyed in confidence.
Comments
Leave a Reply