Tested Advice On Handling A Food-Borne Illness Outbreak For CFPMs

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Minnesota has had no major food-borne illness outbreaks in the last few months. However, in 2023, Minnesota was at the center of a salmonella outbreak that killed two people in our state. While we hope that your establishment is never the cause of a food poisoning case, we felt it necessary to discuss what CFPMs should do if a food-borne illness outbreak occurs.

handling a food-borne Illness Outbreak for CFPMs
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Most customers will never know what you do behind the scenes when your food is being served safely and free from contaminants. However, if your guests begin getting sick, the public will quickly learn you have had food safety problems.

CFPMs and Food-Borne-Illness Outbreaks

 
The first thing any certified food protection manager should do if a guest becomes ill is assess the situation. Find out exactly what your guest consumed, and make sure to examine any of the remaining product in your inventory. If it is evident that your supply has become contaminated, stop using it immediately. Ensure it’s stored at the right temperature and hasn’t come into contact with compromising sources. If you have stored it properly, you may wish to contact your supplier to inform them that you have received a contaminated product.

If an illness spreads beyond a single guest, it could indicate a more serious situation. The certified food manager should collaborate with the local health department to identify the cause if there is a suspected food-borne illness outbreak. It’s important to keep in mind that the health department is there to help you ensure the safety of your food for your guests. By being honest and not concealing any information from them, they can offer valuable assistance in addressing food safety issues that have resulted in your customers receiving contaminated food.

Finally, consider bringing in a professional to provide your staff with a refresher course on food safety. Safe Food Training can tailor a CFPM lesson plan to address your specific situations. For example, SFT can create a segment to handle a suspected food-borne illness outbreak. We can even come to your place of business to train your entire staff.

Fix It and Prevent a Recurrence

When a food safety issue affects the public, immediate and dedicated action is necessary to fix the situation and prevent it from happening again.

We never like to see any restaurant or food producer in the news due to a food-borne illness outbreak. Quality training and diligence are the keys to food safety. Feel free to contact Safe Food Training if you would like to schedule specialized training for your staff.

Balancing a CFPM Career and Personal Life

Balancing A Professional CFPM Career And Personal Life

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The life of a certified food protection manager can be stressful and time-consuming. This becomes more evident and taxing during the hot summer months. Happy couples flood their favorite air-conditioned restaurants to celebrate the freedom of summer. At the same time, food service workers spend long hours in hot kitchens, ensuring every guest has the best experience possible. We’ve often heard it said that restaurant management is a single person’s game, but we feel that a CFPM should be able to enjoy a career and have a personal life beyond the kitchen.

Balancing a MN Certified Food Protection Manager Career and Personal Life

Achieving Work-Life Balance as a CFPM: Managing Your Career and Personal Life

A quick Google search on divorce rates in the food industry will reveal that bartenders, chefs, and restaurant managers all rank in the 25 worst professions for relationships, according to numerous sources. While we offer food safety training, not couples counseling, we engage in conversations during class breaks and after testing sessions. We feel that there should be a chance for both a successful career and a healthy relationship, and we have a few ideas that have been shared by some professionals that we have talked to who have been able to achieve a successful balance.

  • Go out of your way to make time for a personal life outside of work
  • Trust your staff to get the job done in your absence
  • Choose non-peak dates for special occasions

It may sound impossible, but you must make time for both to keep a healthy balance in your professional and personal life. Hearing stories of an 80-hour workweek makes us cringe. If you’re looking for ways to trim your hours to spend more time at home, you may want to rely on your staff to take on some extra responsibilities. If you’ve trained your employees well, you should have no problem trusting them to handle more responsibilities in your absence. Train your sous chef to take on some ordering or inventory duties, count on an assistant manager to help with scheduling, or train a trusted employee to receive and stock your weekly supplies.

Celebrate The 4th On The 9th

For our last tip, we’d like to offer an alternative to celebrating events such as Independence Day on the same day as everyone else. Don’t feel tied down to what the calendar says. Many restaurant professionals celebrate the 4th of July on a day before or after the holiday and go to their favorite restaurants during the week rather than on hectic weekends.

Maybe you’re one of our readers who is a certified food protection manager who has managed to balance a home and professional life. We’d love it if you could leave your tips in the comments below.

Pesticides and ServSafe MN

Best ServSafe Advice For Eliminating Pesticides

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In a study released last October, the FDA found that the amount of pesticides in the produce industry does not pose a significant health threat to the general population. However, scientific organizations like the US Environmental Work Group (EWG) and the European Pesticide Action Network continue to report alarming results. While pesticides on fruits and vegetables may fall outside the rules for ServSafe MN, it is still an issue that food service management professionals should consider.

Pesticides and ServSafe MN

ServSafe MN and Pesticides

This topic can raise many questions and often sparks a heated debate. While we may not have the space to cover every aspect of this issue, we’d like to touch on some highlights. We also want to give ServSafe managers tips on preventing their customers from ingesting potentially dangerous pesticides.

Just because the average levels of pesticide in our produce may not pose a health threat does not mean that every grower uses a safe level of chemical pesticides. It is essential to source your fruits and vegetables from trustworthy and responsible sources committed to ensuring the safety of their produce. A popular strategy for many restaurants and food production facilities involves using only locally sourced, organic produce. If you have ever been in charge of your company’s budget, you may be aware that this can be an incredibly costly choice. You should also consider that organic growers can use certain natural pesticides and still label their product as organic.

ServSafe managers should ensure that customers’ food remains free from pesticides or contaminants regardless of the produce source. Immediately inspect your produce upon delivery. You may not be able to see pesticides, but if any of your produce has any unusual residue, it may have been treated at some point.

Post Inspection Steps

Once you have inspected your produce, knowing which items are shelf-stable is usually good practice. If you have produce that is best kept under refrigeration and stored at room temperature, there is a chance that any chemicals on the surface could seep into the flesh of your produce items.

Finally, always rinse and allow your produce to dry thoroughly before serving. The water’s propulsion will wash off unseen soil or pesticides, making it safer to eat than unwashed fruits or vegetables.

How do you keep your guests safe from man-made chemicals in your produce? Do you rely only on washing, or do you prefer to order from organic farms?

techniques for CFPMs to deal with shortages

Tested Techniques For CFPMs To Deal With Shortages

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Even though they are becoming common, food shortages due to drought, global conflicts, product recalls, or supply chain issues can be frustrating for MN-CFPMs. While these shortages can be a major inconvenience, your facility still has to work through them, so we felt we’d offer a few suggestions for when food shortages arise.

How Certified Food Protection Managers Deal with Product Shortages

Tested Techniques For CFPMs To Deal With Shortages
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When shortages prevent certified food protection managers from producing their usual dishes, we have three solid recommendations to offer.

  • Find a second source for product
  • Come up with an adequate substitution
  • Keep your customers informed

Most large food service suppliers source their goods from major national sources. When drought or cold weather affects supply from well-known producers, consider turning to smaller outlets. If major growing regions have limited amounts of produce, such as greens and fruits, that are available, CFPMs may wish to contact local sources or smaller food supply companies to see if they have your required ingredients available. Your local area farms may also be a solution. This option may be more expensive, or you may have to pick up your produce rather than have it delivered. Local suppliers may offer the same products as major growers, so you can keep serving the same cuisine as before.

Sometimes, a second source for a product simply does not exist. During a major recall of any product, alternate suppliers are stretched thin. When confronted with this type of shortage, CFPMs may need to stretch their creativity and develop new menu items and unique substitutions with their current production. For some menu items, there can be quick and easy substitutions that your guests will readily accept, such as salads and side dishes. If an item cannot be served, such as the protein for a main course, bringing in a similar protein and running a temporary replacement dish on your menu is a good idea.

Make Guests Aware

Finally, inform your customers of dishes and product substitutions before ordering. Very few things are more frustrating than not being told that the menu item you have decided on is unavailable when it comes time to order. Tell your guests which items on your menu are unavailable due to product shortages before they are even given a menu. Also, make sure that your servers are also aware of the situation. Taking an order for an item you do not have available should never happen.

At Safe Food Training, we’d like to hear your strategy for dealing with ingredient shortages. Do you prefer to make substitutions, find new sources for ingredients, or temporarily remove unavailable dishes from your menu?