Food service industry hygiene
October 1st 2006

JohnsonDiversey's Antoine Rocourt looks at how to achieve best practise in the food service industry

To achieve appropriate levels of hygiene within the food and drink sector, cleaning practices, equipment and training needs to be considered throughout the whole business process. Hygiene needs to be considered from the moment food materials are gathered through to the environment in which food and drink are manufactured and packaged, right up until when the end customer buys and consumes the final product. If hygiene standards fail at any stage, the quality and safety of the food or drink is compromised.

According to the European Commission brochure,"From Farm to Fork. Safe Food and Europe's Consumers", low standards of food hygiene invite the spread of salmonella and listeria, which cause food poisoning. Salmonella gets far less publicity than mad cow disease or chicken fever, but is in fact more of a threat to the food and drink industry.

Cross contamination of harmful bacteria can develop as a result of inappropriate cleaning of food or feed processing or preparation areas. Or from using the same chopping board or knife for raw and ready-to-eat food without cleaning or disinfecting in between. Or importantly: a failure to adequately wash hands after touching raw food or visiting the washroom.

Food prepared in restaurants and catering environments can be easily contaminated when handled, putting customers at serious risk of food poisoning.Not only is food hygiene important in ensuring that food is safe, personal hygiene also plays an important role in limiting the risk of contaminating food with harmful bacteria.

Maintaining high standards of hand hygiene is essential to preventing the spread of bacteria within food preparation environments.The Food Standards Agency UK recommends that staff working in kitchens,'Should wash and dry (their) hands regularly when handling food, in particular: before starting work before handling ready-to-eat food after touching raw food, especially raw meat or poultry after going to the toilet after a break.' *

To ensure that hands are hygienically clean for work in food preparation areas, hands should be washed using warm water and a liquid soap. Instructions for correct basic hand-washing technique should be placed prominently and near to the washing stations at food preparation areas.They should present a simple step-by-step procedure - directing washing from general areas like the palms to easy-to-miss parts such as fingertips and nail folds.Training should be given to staff to ensure everyone has full understanding of the importance of proper hand-washing in food preparation areas. Every step should be explained and discussed in detail.Additionally, handwashing stations should be easily accessible as good cleaning facilities in food preparation areas help to encourage staff to wash their hands frequently.

An important area of hygiene within the food service industry that is not often given the consideration it deserves is floor hygiene.

Flooring is not often regarded as having the same level of importance in food preparation areas because food should not come into direct contact with the floor and flooring in kitchens does not need to be hygienically clean to the levels of the actual food preparation surface.

That is, the bacterial loading on the floor does not have to be reduced to acceptable levels with the use of chemical disinfectants as opposed to food preparation surfaces.

However, floor cleanliness, particularly under or behind appliances and in the eating environment itself is a good indicator of overall hygiene standards and of particular interest to both patrons and environmental health organisations.

Failure to keep the kitchen floor clean can have a detrimental impact on the profitability of a restaurant. Grease and soil trafficked from the kitchen by waiting staff can transfer to carpets in the dining area making maintenance costs higher, reducing the life of the carpet and potentially impacting the perception and even the patronage of the restaurant.

Flooring in both food and drink manufacturing environments and food preparation areas must be kept clean and clear for health and safety reasons.There are two key health and safety issues associated with kitchen flooring. Firstly, floors must be kept clean to eliminate food sources for pests which can contaminate food and preparation surfaces, and slippages. Secondly, slipping or tripping over in the kitchen can in most cases be attributed to the fact that kitchen floors become readily contaminated with grease and relatively high levels of water, slip is a real concern.

Data from the Health & Safety Executive confirms that pedestrian slipping and tripping is the most common cause of injury in UK workplaces and a major issue for the food service industry. Each year slip and trip accidents cause well over 11,000 major injuries,more than 90% of which result in fractures.The costs to industry are substantial (over 500 million per year) and legal actions following an injury can be extremely damaging to business, especially where the public is involved. Importantly there is also an incalculable human cost and suffering to those injured. **

The choice of equipment for cleaning floors is largely dependent on the size of the flooring area. Although a rotary machine and wet pick-up can be used, scrubber-dryers are by far the most effective cleaning method as they offer cleaning performance across a wide number of applications, from small compact up to large 'ride on' machines. JohnsonDiversey's wide range of TASKI swingo scrubberdriers lend themselves to the varied cleaning situations and requirements that different kitchens, bars or manufacturing plants present.

Hygiene training and the safe use of cleaning chemicals is of vital importance to the food service industry as employers have a responsibility to assess all potential risks relating to the cleaning process and protect employees from hazardous substances at work.

Specialist cleaning chemicals are used within the food and drink industries which attack protein, fats and sugars and as such extra care needs to be taken as human tissue contains these same components and is therefore susceptible to irritation or burning.

Food safety is more than just meeting the law; failure to practice high levels of hygiene may negatively impact upon the value of a business's brand and its relationship with customers and employees.

JohnsonDiversey can provide total food safety solutions ranging from food safety training, to auditing,HACCP implementation and consulting.

Programs like 'HotSpots' and 'Professional Cleaning and You' link good hygiene practices to the new European Food Safety Laws, assessing hygiene risks, directing cleaning and hygiene efforts where they matter most, and providing advice, training and monitoring support.

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