Get your MN kitchen compliant with our state-approved Certified Food Protection Manager Training. We’re offering headache-free 8-hour initial courses and 4-hour renewals.

Reopening Restaurants and Food Safety Training

Reopening Restaurants and Food Safety Training

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With Minnesota’s stay-at-home order extended until May 18th, we’re still left with plenty of uncertainty as to when restaurants will be able to return to normal operation. While we don’t know when or how we will be able to allow guests to dine-in in our restaurants, it’s a good idea to start preparing for the time when we’ll be able to do so. The National Restaurant Association, a premier food safety training organization, has published a guide to help restaurateurs prepare for reopening their eating establishments.

Reopening Restaurants and Food Safety Training
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Food Safety Training Guide to Reopening Eating Establishments

In the National Restaurant Association’s recommended guidance, they’ve broken down four aspects of reopening and food safety training that certified food managers must consider before and during the reopening process.

  • Food Safety
  • Cleaning and Sanitizing
  • Employee Health and Hygiene
  • Social Distancing

While our food safety training procedures must be adjusted to account for reducing the risk of the spread of COVID-19, we must not allow food safety to take a back seat. Preventing corona virus transfer and keeping the food we serve safe can go hand in hand. Here’s a few things you should consider to prioritize food safety.

  • Wash cooking and serving utensils more often than normal.
  • Keep inventory at appropriate levels for reduced service to prevent spoilage.
  • Promote food safety by continued training and monitoring.

Cleaning and sanitizing is a process that can be started now, even before reopening is allowed, and should continue daily as you reopen or provide take-out service as long as stay-at-home rules are in place. Knobs on equipment, light switches, door handles, countertops and other places that are constantly touched should be prioritized, but don’t forget out of the way places that are only contacted a few times a day, or even just once a week. Once we are allowed to reopen, make sure tables, self-ordering kiosks and anything else a guest may touch is sanitized before seating new guests at tables.

The health and hygiene of your staff is now more important than ever. Let your staff know that they must call in sick if they have any signs of illness. Any employee with a fever, cough or other corona or flu-like symptoms must remain home. If an employee does become ill, make sure they are symptom free for at least three days before returning to work. In the event a staff member contracts COVID-19, follow all CDC guidelines.

Finally, enact appropriate social distancing protocols. We don’t know exactly what Minnesota’s regulations on these may be just yet, but we have some things to consider:

  • Separate seated tables by at least six feet
  • Consider self-ordering kiosks or tablets at each table
  • Promote reservations or request guests call ahead to limit waiting with other guests
  • Provide sneeze guards or barriers between service staff and guest where appropriate

Once we have more concrete information from the Minnesota Department of Health, we’ll share our state-specific rules with you. Stay safe and stay healthy.

Illness reporting requirement for Certified Food Protection Managers

Illness Reporting Requirements for Certified Food Protection Managers

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We all know that the health department tracks cases of foodborne illness reported to them by consumers who are sickened by food, but did you know that certified food protection managers are required to play an active role in the reporting of and tracking of illnesses of both guests and staff? This week, we’ll take a close look at the reporting duties of a certified food protection manager, and how tracking employee illnesses plays a vital role in keeping the public safe.

Illness reporting requirement for Certified Food Protection Managers

When are Certified Food Protection Managers Required to Report Illnesses?

Many certified food managers may be hesitant to inform the health department when one of their guests claims to have been sickened by the food they were served. They may think that this could instantly lead to an inspection, or even an unwarranted punishment inflicted on the establishment. Over the course of our years of food safety training, we’ve found local health inspectors are more interested in keeping the public safe and solving problems rather than punishing food production facilities. In fact, it could turn out that your establishment wasn’t responsible for poisoning a guest, but the information you provide could lead to a source in the supply chain where product may have become contaminated.

Even if it’s just one case, MN illness reporting requires certified food protection managers to contact the health department if a guest claims to have symptoms including vomiting and diarrhea. They are also required to report suspected cases of:

  • E.coli
  • Hepatitis A
  • Norovirus
  • Salmonella
  • Shigella
  • Parasitic Infections

Reporting these types of cases to the health department helps them establish whether or not there is a pattern or cause to look into a potential outbreak, be it in your restaurant or somewhere in the supply chain.

The same scenario is true when one of your staff becomes ill. Certified food protection manager training tells us that a record should be kept of staff illnesses. You should track which employees have called out sick with stomach ailments or who have been diagnosed with common foodborne illnesses. If a pattern emerges, there may be the need to take a look a food safety lapses that may be directly infecting your staff.

How do you handle reports of foodborne illness that may have originated at your business?

Food Manager Training During COVID-19

Food Manager Training During COVID-19 Stay At Home Executive Order

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In an effort to combat the spread of COVID-19, the state of Minnesota has temporarily imposed a ban on groups of 10 or more from gathering in the same place. This has created a big disruption in many Minnesota residents’ personal and professional lives. Not only does this impact restaurants as far as allowing diners into their establishment, but it also causes a big problem for food service managers who had registered to attend certified food protection manager recertification classes and other food safety management courses during this time. Since classes obviously cannot be taught at this time, how can these managers get necessary food manager certification training during the COVID-19?

Food Manager Training During COVID-19
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Solutions for Food Manager Training When Groups Are Limited By COVID-19

We’re fortunate to live in an age where technology can help spread information and keep people together. Since large gatherings are currently prohibited, ServSafe, NRFSP and other Minnesota recognized certified food manager courses must be taken online for the time being.

If you’re due for recertification or are looking for your first food manager certification, now might be the perfect time to register for an online food safety certification course. These courses meet all of the state’s guidelines for certified food protection managers.

Taking an online course is only the first step in certification, however. A supervised testing environment is still required for the examination itself. With groups of 10 or more currently being restricted, how is that possible? The simple answer is that at this time, examinations just can’t be taken, but we have some good news from the Department of Health in regards to exams and extensions.

As of March 17th, Minnesota will grant a six-month extension to food service managers whose certification expires between March 17th and April 30th. This will give ample time for these managers to complete their mandated four hours as well as take their renewal examinations.

Where does this leave those seeking first time certification? At this time, the best we can suggest is to take the online food safety training so that you’re ready to take your exam as soon they once again become available. If your business has suddenly lost its food safety manager, there is fortunately a 60 day window for you to certify a new one, and hopefully we’ll have weathered the storm and returned to normal before that time has passed.

If you were scheduled for an instructor lead food management course that was canceled, contact us if you need assistance registering for an online version of any food safety certification course.

Replace a certified food manager

What Happens When A Business Must Replace Its Certified Food Manager?

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Turnover is inevitable in nearly any industry, but with many food establishments running with smaller staffs, the loss of any team member can be more than a simple inconvenience. But how should you react if your restaurant or food production facility suddenly loses and must replace your certified food manager?

Replace a certified food manager
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Replacing a Certified Food Manager

Whether your certified food manager turns in a two-week notice or is forced to leave without notice due to unforeseen circumstances, this loss hurts any food business. Not only are you losing your leader in the kitchen and the manager in charge of food safety training, but you’re also losing the one member on your staff whose position is required by the Minnesota food code.

So, what’s the rule in this situation? If your certified food manager leaves suddenly, can you still operate your business?

You can rest assured that it won’t be necessary to shutter your doors if you lose your certified food manager. The Minnesota food code allows for a 60 day period to find and hire another certified candidate for that position.

Just because you have 60 days to replace your Minnesota certified food manager, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make an effort to replace them right away. Interviewing, reference checks and certification training can take time, so make sure that you begin the hiring or promoting process as soon as you find out your current manager is moving on.

The best strategy for this scenario is to be prepared before it even happens. Your current food safety manager should be identifying and training employees with the potential to become a Minnesota food protection manager. It might even be prudent to have an assistant food safety manager take the certified food protection manager training course and exam. This would not only provide a back-up plan but give you an extra set of eyes keeping your production line free from food safety risks.

Do you have a contingency plan in the event of the loss of any key staff member?