On January 16th of this year our friend and founder of Safe Food Training, Doug Nick passed away unexpectedly. Doug founded the company in 1998 and built it from the ground up. He retired from the business operations in 2011 but stayed active as an instructor for several years after that.
Doug founded Safe Food Training with the intent of providing an informative and productive learning environment that also was fun and interactive. He would often say people do not learn well when they are bored to tears. We adhere to those principals to this day.
Doug was a business partner, friend and mentor for me and I truly appreciate all that he did for myself and the business to assure it would continue to thrive.
There are a few people in your life who really make a huge and positive lasting impact. Doug Nick was one of those people in my life and I am forever grateful.
You are missed.
Tim Niles
https://minnesota.safefoodtraining.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/doug-nick-founder-of-safe-food.jpg1067800Christine Dantzhttps://minnesota.safefoodtraining.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Remove-background-project-1024x614.pngChristine Dantz2022-03-28 14:35:362026-05-24 15:39:36A Tribute To Doug Nick Founder Of Safe Food Training
Marinades infuse meats, poultry and even vegetables with great flavors, but if you’re not careful they may also infuse your food with pathogens, bacteria and other contaminants that could sicken guests. As the saying goes, so it’s important to make sure that your extra flavor doesn’t come with a dose of illness. Let’s explore food safety training for pathogen-free marinades.
Image credit: pxfuel
Food Safety Training to Prevent Tainted Marinades from Causing Foodborne Illness
There are three major concerns when it comes to food safety training for bacteria-free marinades:
Cross-contamination
Spoiled Fresh Ingredients
Temperature Control
If you’re using the same marinade for multiple purposes, you run the risk of mixing two ingredients that may be required to be cooked to different temperatures. You’ll inevitably contaminate some ingredients if you mix multiple items in the same container. Meats and vegetables cook at different temperatures, and poultry requires a much higher final cooking temperature than most other raw foods. To avoid any type of cross-contamination, use a separate container to marinate different ingredients. It’s also a good food safety procedure to throw out marinades used for raw ingredients and start over each time you marinade new ingredients regardless of type.
If you make your own marinades in-house and make more than you need for any given day, make sure you take note of the shelf life of any fresh ingredients involved. Fresh ingredients spoil over time naturally and adding them to liquids can accelerate the process. Use proper labeling techniques to date all marinades and have a defined expiration date on all marinades and marinated product.
Temperature control can also sometimes be an issue with large batches of marinades. When soaking raw proteins, make sure that all ingredients are out of the danger zone, and don’t soak any protein at room temperature.
Finally, if you utilize dry rubs or marinades, you should still follow the same food safety procedures as wet marinades.
What’s the favorite marinade you use in your restaurant?
https://minnesota.safefoodtraining.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/how-to-food-safety-training-fo.jpg532800Christine Dantzhttps://minnesota.safefoodtraining.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Remove-background-project-1024x614.pngChristine Dantz2022-03-23 09:33:582026-06-03 20:59:35How to Food Safety Training for Pathogen Free Marinades
We talk a lot about proper handwashing procedures as the best foodborne illness prevention, but many times the areas surrounding handwashing sinks are overlooked by certified food protection managers. Let’s take a closer look at how CFPMs properly maintain the area around your handwashing sink locations.
Image credit: USDA via Flickr
How To Set up a Proper Handwashing Sink Location For CFPMs
CFPMs already train their staff on how to properly use and stock a handwashing station, but, as a quick review, remember your handwashing station should be supplied with:
Hot Water
Soap
Paper Towels of Air Dryer
Fingernail Brush
This is usually one of the first things covered in any online or in-person CFPM training course. What may be misunderstood is what the area surrounding your handwashing station should look like. There can be foodborne illness risks involved if your sink location isn’t properly arranged or installed.
First CFPMs should make sure, your handwashing sinks should be easily and immediately accessible. They should be in the food preparation areas and not located behind closed doors. If you block your handwashing sink with storage racks or other equipment, it serves little use if your staff cannot wash their hands. A restroom sink should also not be considered a handwashing sink as door knobs and handles may be contaminated if touched after washing your hands.
Another thing to consider is the relative location to preparation surfaces or clean dish storage. If your handwashing sinks are in close proximity to clean spaces in your kitchen, make sure that there is no risk of water or soap splashing on sanitary items or surfaces. Ensuring there is a gap between these areas and your handwashing station will reduce the risk of contamination from dirty water and handwashing soap.
Finally, CFPMs should avoid storing any food product or clean utensils above and below handwashing station. Doing so may increase the risk of contamination from dirty hands or water used in the handwashing process.
Have you taken the time to evaluate your handwashing stations?
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Cross contamination causes numerous foodborne illnesses every year, and food safe managers need to take steps to train their staff on the risks and provide the tools necessary to prevent sickening guests. Rather than using generic white cutting boards, food safe managers may want to look into different colored cutting boards with designated purposes to greatly reduce cross contamination risks.
Image credit: Hygiplas viaBigomart
How Food Safe Managers Can Train staff To Use Colored Cutting Boards Reduce Foodborne Illness Risk
While you can properly wash, sanitize an utilize generic cutting boards for any purpose, there’s often a chance that a cutting board can be mistakenly used for raw product and then prepared food or a board may be contaminated with an allergen that only one member of the kitchen is aware of, increasing the risk of it being used again. Purchasing color coded boards will clearly identify what type of product can be used on each cutting board. There are a few different patterns, but the most common codes are:
Green: Raw Vegetables
White: Cheese and Dairy
Red: Raw Meat
Brown: Raw Seafood
Yellow: Raw Poultry
Blue: Finished Product
Purple: Allergen Free
As you can see, food safe managers and their staff can clearly identify what product has been prepared on each board if the system is followed. A blue board that has been left out had obviously been used for cooked product while red, brown and yellow are warning flags that there is increased risk of cross contamination with raw product should that board be used for any other purpose.
We’ve looked at several sets available on the market, and many neglect the risk of allergen contamination. We strongly advise food safe managers look into purchasing a purple or uniquely colored cutting board that is reserved only for use in the event a guest with known allergies requests food be prepared on an allergen free surface.
The color code isn’t always a catchall, however, if you’re in doubt as to if a board is contaminated or not, take the time to wash it before using.
Do you use color coded cutting boards to prevent cross contamination?
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