Food Safety Blog and CFPM Resource Hub

January 22, 2024January 22, 2024

Wardrobe Advice For ServSafe Managers

Whether their uniform accessories are for style or convenience, or if a celebrity TV chef makes it appear fashionable, there are several wardrobe quirks that ServSafe MN managers should avoid. While the possible list of uniform components that are food safety hazards can be extensive, we’d like to focus on three that we feel should never be part of your work attire.

Wardrobe Advice for ServSafe Managers — *Image credit: 123rf*

Three Uniform Components to Kick Out of the Kitchen

Anything you add to your work dress instantly becomes susceptible to the same contamination risks as the rest of your uniform. The following are three things that we feel should not be allowed in your uniform policy.

Dry towels attached to the uniform
Arm and hand jewelry
Baseball caps as head coverings

Many food workers feel looping a dry towel around apron strings or slinging it over a shoulder is convenient. It keeps your towel handy and readily available when a plate or cutting board needs a quick wipe. Unfortunately, the apron is a common collector of dirt, grease, and debris in the kitchen, and the shoulder of your uniform can become contaminated with sweat and other bacteria. Keep your dry towels stored in a clean place that will allow them to be easily accessible when needed.

The regulations concerning jewelry in food preparation facilities are often overlooked. The food code states that only simple wedding bands and plain rings can be worn. Arm and wrist bands, rings, and other accessories can often go unnoticed, especially with the front-of-the-house staff in restaurants. Consider a necklace or anklet as an alternative for an employee wearing a medical alert bracelet. Management should also be advised for each employee who is wearing such jewelry so that it can be quickly located in the event of a medical emergency.

Ball Caps: A Wardrobe Dilemma For ServSafe Managers

While the Minnesota Food Code concerning head coverings doesn’t disallow baseball caps, we feel there may be a few concerns with incorporating them into your dress code. Most ball caps are crafted from absorbent cloth, and the bills are generally constructed from cardboard lined with soft material. Over time, this cloth and cardboard can become saturated with sweat, steam, and other substances. This creates a potential breeding ground for bacteria. While paper head coverings or hair nets are ideal, we understand that baseball caps are comfortable and familiar. Alternatively, if they’re part of your dress code, keep them clean and replace them regularly.

These three items seem to provide style, comfort, and convenience in the workplace, but unfortunately, they also create contamination dangers. By making it a policy to eliminate them, you can make the cleanest kitchen even safer.

January 15, 2024January 22, 2024

Instructive Food Safety Certification Tips That Will Keep Kids Safe

If you are a Minnesota food safety certified professional at a daycare center, after-school facility, or restaurant that caters to younger diners, you know that kids have different tastes than adults and often have special dietary needs that must be accounted for. We’ll provide a food safety certification guide on creating a safe and healthy delivery environment for kids.

Food Safety Certification Guide For Serving Children

The first thing to remember when serving children is that they are more sensitive to food-borne pathogens and can have more severe allergic reactions than adults. If your operation serves children regularly or on a large scale, we strongly suggest that you:

Pay close attention to heating, storing, and holding temperatures
Remove potential allergy risks from your facility
Provide gluten-free and low-sugar options
Offer a variety of healthy options

In previous posts, we have discussed our first tip in great detail, but it is essential to be diligent when serving at-risk groups such as children. If you are unsure what the proper heating and holding temperatures are, you may wish to review Minnesota Food Code temperature guidelines.

Secondly, removing all allergen risks from your facility may be a good idea if you operate a daycare center or other business that exclusively caters to children. Remember that peanuts, tree nuts, and seafood are high-risk allergen items; keeping them out of your kitchen will eliminate the risk of accidentally exposing a child to them.

It is becoming more common nowadays to come across children who have been diagnosed as gluten intolerant or sensitive to sugar. You can ease many parents’ fears if you supply their children with a gluten-free and low-sugar substitute for their meals.

If you serve the same group of children daily, offering a wider variety of meals is a good idea. Even though some children are OK with the same lunch several times a week, you’ll provide better nutritional options if you vary the meals. While most children would love to eat hotdogs daily, you’ll appeal to parents if you offer a wide variety of healthy meals.

Serving Kids at Restaurants

Remember that parents are looking at what their kids order. There are benefits to restaurants with a special menu tailored to young diners. While frozen pizza and microwavable macaroni and cheese may be cost-effective, parents know the difference. You may wish to consider making your macaroni and other kid’s menu items in-house to show parents that their kids’ meals are just as important as theirs.

Food safety certification trained managers at many outlets choose to get incredibly creative when serving kids. What is one of the best items you have ever seen on a kid’s menu?

January 9, 2024January 9, 2024

Top 10 Certified Food Manager New Year’s Resolutions

New Years Resolutions for Certified Food Managers

Let’s shift our focus to the new year after cleaning the champagne glasses, wrapping up the college bowl games of New Year’s, and sweeping up the streamers. Hopefully, every certified food manager will resolve to be diligent regarding safety this year, but we have ten specific resolutions that are high on our priority list.

Specific Resolutions for Certified Food Managers

1: Use your food thermometer in all situations. To ensure that all foods remain safe for consumption, it is important to keep them out of the danger zone regardless of whether they are hot-held, chilled, or ready-to-serve.

2: Wash all fruits and vegetables thoroughly before serving. Potential food-borne illness hazards can still affect raw and room temperature-served foods.

3: Cool hot foods safely and as quickly as possible. Cooling soups, roasts, and other hot foods properly is essential. They need to get below dangerous temperatures as fast as possible.

4: Wash your hands. It is crucial to emphasize that after handling raw food, changing gloves, eating, smoking, or using the bathroom, you must wash your hands for 20 seconds with plenty of soap and hot water.

5. Don’t work while sick. If you are sick, it’s possible to spread your illness to your customers. If you’re exhibiting disease symptoms, take time off, rest, and get better.

6: Make sure your refrigeration is working correctly. Buy and install a thermometer for each unit in your facility. Sometimes, the difference between 39 and 42 degrees is impossible to determine using human senses, but bacteria will undoubtedly know the difference.

7: Rotate your inventory correctly. Don’t let old or expired foods make their way into your preparation areas. Ensure all your stock is labeled and rotated to ensure that potentially spoiled product is never served to your customers.

But Wait There’s More!

8: Make sure cloths are clean and free of contaminants. It’s no use cleaning your workspace with a soiled cleaning cloth. This can have adverse effects and even create hazards. Keep cleaning utensils clean!

9: Be diligent! Don’t ignore potential hazards with the excuse that you’ll “deal with it later.” Take care of them right away.

10: Promote food safety. Be an educator. Train each staff member on the proper routine to ensure safe food handling for their station. A well-taught employee will be a diligent one.

We hope every certified food manager who has completed food safety certification in MN will take these ten resolutions to heart, and strive to make 2024 safe from food-borne illness.

January 2, 2024January 9, 2024

These Post-Holiday Season Slump Secrets Can Help CFPMs

The month of December is traditionally the busiest month of the year in the food service industry. But it’s followed by January, which has the notorious reputation of being the slowest. While at first, the post-holiday season slump is a pleasant break from the non-stop holiday pace, MN certified food protection managers – CFPMs soon begin to scratch their heads to find ways to keep their staff productive and happily employed at the same time.

In some cases, it may be necessary to trim labor hours during the slow season. However, there are ways to take advantage of the downtime.

Potential Post-Holiday Season Slump Projects For CFPMs

Before cutting hours or letting your staff set up card games in the break room, there are several tasks that you should consider taking care of when you have a seasonal lull in production.

Ensure your key managers have up-to-date Minnesota CFPM certification
Address potential food safety hazards
Clean and organize storage areas
Cross-train employees

One of every MN certified food protection manager’s priorities should be to address potential food safety concerns during the post-holiday slump season. That is why January is the perfect month to ensure your staff’s training is current. Instead of taking away valuable production time during the busy months, this slow season is the perfect time for food safety training. It is also a good time to alter and change production methods and organize your storage space to eliminate potential contamination hazards.

Utilizing downtime to cross-train employees is an often overlooked alternative to cutting staff hours. January is a good time of the year to assess your team members for individuals who have the potential to move into other roles within your facility or those who are eager to learn more.

There are slow seasons throughout the year in nearly any industry. Spending your downtime wisely can often prepare your team for success in the new year. The staff at Safe Food Training would like to take this time to wish you a safe, productive, and successful 2024.