Certified Food Protection Manager Archives

August 22, 2022August 19, 2022

Sure Fire Tips for Taking the Certified Food Manager Exam after Taking the Online Course

We’ve seen an uptick in certified food protection manager ( CFPM ) candidates taking the online food safety course due to its convenience. Every so often, we receive a call or an email asking how to access the online certified food manager exam so that it can be taken from home. As per Minnesota CFPM rules, the certification exam must be taken in a supervised environment to ensure that the test is monitored properly. While most certified food managers would never cheat, this also allows for an appropriate supervisor to be present should there be an issue with the test. Since the certified food manager exam setting is different than the online class, it’s important to prepare for the examination a little differently to ensure the best results.

Preparing for the Certified Food Manager Exam After Taking the Online Class

We have a few simple tips for taking the certified food manager exam:

Schedule the exam as soon as possible
Take notes during the online food management course
Be punctual on exam day

If you’re taking the instructor-led version of the food manager course, the exam generally follows that same day. This is not true with online food safety courses; you must schedule an in-person examination. Keeping that in mind, try to take the exam at the closest possible date shortly after finishing the course. This will keep the information fresh and keep your confidence high.

While taking the course, be sure to take detailed notes that you can review later. This will help refresh your memory after some time has elapsed since the training.

Finally, be on time for the certified food manager exam. Plan your route ahead of time and leave enough leeway in the event of travel difficulties. If you run late, you may miss valuable test-taking time. It’s also been suggested that lateness may increase anxiety as you’re worried about showing up before the test starts. This worry may bleed over into your efforts to do well on the test.

Do you prefer taking the certified food manager exam immediately after an instructor-led course or scheduling it as soon as possible after the online course?

August 15, 2022August 6, 2022

How Certified Food Protection Managers Can See a Better Food Cost Picture

Certified food protection managers know that keeping an eye on food costs allows for better profit margins, waste reduction and inventory control. However, many food businesses calculate their food costs by using a simple formula involving the cost of goods versus sales hoping to hit a food cost percentage somewhere in the low thirties. While this simplified system gives a good overview, many certified food protection managers benefit from delving deeper into their food cost picture. Let’s take a look at a couple of ways to get more detail into whether your food costs are hurting or helping your bottom line.

A Certified Food Managers Guide to Food Cost Control and Better Profits

Meeting food cost goals is a must for survival in the food industry. With prices rising and product shortages becoming an issue it’s more important than ever to track food costs. Rather than simply calculating expenses versus profits, there are other steps that can help certified food protection managers see where the worst offenders are for causing costs to rise. Certified food managers should:

Evaluate the cost of each menu item
Look for substitutes for high-priced ingredients
Consider trimming expansive menus

It definitely will be a tedious process, but calculating the cost and profit margin on every item on your menu gives you a great picture of how you’re investing in your ingredients. You may find that you have certain items that cost way too much to produce that are throwing off your food costs. These expensive items can drain your income, so you may wish to consider raising prices or adjusting recipes to keep your menu sustainable. On the other hand, you may find that there are some items you’re practically giving away. Some certified food protection managers use these dishes to offset costs of dishes that detract from food cost goals or increase sales prices; achieving a balance between the two will help manage food costs more effectively.

When evaluating your menu, you may find some ingredients are just not sustainable when it comes to food costs and waste. There are many talented food business managers that would see more affordable, yet quality, substitutes.

You may also find that waste is high on low-volume menu items. If you’re throwing away large volumes of product, that’s going to kill food costs, so menu adjustments may be necessary.

If you don’t know how to begin calculating individual menu item food costs, we suggest you talk to your product supplier. Many significant suppliers offer software that eases the process, and many of these programs even have live cost updates so you can check week to week to see where your bottom line sits.

Have you taken the time to evaluate how you calculate food costs?

July 12, 2022July 12, 2022

Five Remarkable Ways Certified Food Managers Can Beat The Heat

Five remarkable Ways certified food planners can beat the heat

Summer temperatures can be brutal on kitchen staff, and certified food protection managers need to find ways to keep their staff healthy without sacrificing food safety. Since we’re nearing the dog days of summer, let’s take a look at a few ways certified food managers can beat the heat.

Five Remarkable Ways Certified Food Managers Can Beat The Heat — *Image credit: hxdyl via 123rf*

Tips for Certified Food Managers to Surviving Summer Heat in the Kitchen

We all have our horror stories about the hottest kitchen we’ve ever been in, but before your current one becomes the next inferno, you may want to look into better ways to cool your kitchen. We’ve talked to many certified food protection managers, and we’ve compiled the top five ways to keep your staff cool:

Air curtains
Better fan locations
Frequent break times
Clean hood vents
Adequate hydration

Simply propping open an exterior door can provide some airflow to kitchen areas but may allow for insects to intrude, especially after dark when moths, flies and gnats are attracted to the light. Installing an air curtain over your doorways will allow for fresh air, but keep bugs away.

Fans are the most common way to introduce airflow into the kitchen and cool staff down, but beware about where you place them. Make sure that any fans placed in the kitchen do not blow air onto preparation or cooking surfaces. Fans can suck in dust and other contaminants, spray microscopic particles off of raw food onto other surfaces and potentially introduce other contamination hazards to the force of blown air. To prevent this, many certified food protection managers supply fan stations away from the line in non-food areas for a brief respite or place them at ground level to offer some air circulation.

Many times, kitchens overheat due to the ventilation system not functioning properly. Before the summer heat begins to melt your line cooks, make sure that hood vent filters are cleaned regularly and the system is in good working order.

Our last tip doesn’t necessarily involve a cooling method, but dehydration can raise the human body’s internal temperature causing overheating. Certified food managers can also beat the heat by ensuring your staff drinks plenty of water, or provide them with an electrolyte-fortified drink to prevent dehydration from becoming an issue.

June 27, 2022June 19, 2022

Useful Idea for CFPMs- Bolster Staffing with Culinary Students

We’ve heard reports from some certified food protection managers CFPMs that the industry seems to have a shortage of applicants for open positions, and many food businesses are scrambling to bolster their staff to keep the kitchen fully staffed. Where help-wanted signs and ads on popular job websites may not be working, perhaps a call to your local culinary school would help fill vacancies, at least in the short term. We’ve talked to a few culinary instructors and found that they’re also looking for food businesses and CFPMs who have staffing opportunities to help their students gain real-world experience.

How Culinary School Students Can Help Solve a Staffing Crisis for CFPMs

Over the past few decades, culinary schools have become more popular and have spread beyond exclusive schools for future high-end chefs to local technical and junior colleges for those looking to get their foot in the door in the industry. There are even programs at some larger high schools where students can earn future college elective credits by taking culinary classes, so while there may be a shortage of seasoned food-service professionals, there’s no shortage of those interested in learning about the industry.

CFPMs who need to fill staffing vacancies can take advantage of the culinary education sector by contacting these programs and searching for possible candidates for open job positions. These candidates may be raw when it comes to real-world experience, but they’ll have the desire to grow and learn. Many of these programs even require an internship or work-study, so your business’ interest in hiring a culinary student helps them to graduate and earn their degrees.

For the most part, internships and work-study programs aren’t exactly the beginning of a full-time career path for applicants in your company, but CFPMs can temporarily alleviate the staffing shortage for a set amount of time. These programs have a certain number of required work hours, so you’ll have a good idea as to an end date for your new temporary hire, and who knows, you could find a passionate professional who loves working in your food business and decides to stay if the option is available.

Has your certified food protection manager considered looking into hiring interns from a Minnesota culinary school?