During summer, more people tend to grab food while on the go. This is especially true when they’re hitting the golf course, taking their families to parks or the swimming pool. Many certified food managers create quick-serve products such as sandwiches and other ready to eat food available to their customers for this exact situation.
Certified Food Manager’s Role in Keeping Prepackaged Foods Safe
Your food safety training course normally covers this topic. But, it’s essential for certified food managers to review it before any changes in operation. This is particularly relevant since numerous outlets only sell prepackaged, ready-to-eat items seasonally. We think you should take into consideration the following four points concerning this style of service:
- Appropriate sealing is necessary for self-serve items.
- Always display hot & cold foods at safe temperatures
- Displayed food must be fresh
- Store unwrapped fruits and vegitables in a display case
The first item on our grab-and-go list may seem like common sense to most certified food managers. However, we have seen baskets of freshly made, unsealed cookies sitting on countertops for customers to grab. We have also seen unwrapped deli-style sandwiches in self-serve refrigerators. If you offer self-service for your ready-to-eat product, you must wrap it to prevent a customer who may not want to buy the item from touching it with bare hands. Products not for self-service could be left unwrapped in a display case if an employee will package them when sold. All food displayed outside a case or refrigerator should be covered to prevent contamination.
Hot and cold ready-to-eat items packaged for quick sale must follow all Minnesota Food Code temperature rules when displayed. Ensure that your employees know which products to keep hot and cold and which ones are stable at room temperature and do not require refrigeration.
Never have items in your case that are for display only. All items should be fresh and available for service to avoid accidentally serving a guest expired product.
A Case For Certain Grab and Go Items
Our final suggestion is that certified food protection managers are not necessarily required under current food handling regulations. However, it is prudent to store grab-and-go items, such as unwrapped fruits and vegetables, in a display case. Certain fruits, such as bananas, attract fruit flies and other insects. Keeping them in your display case rather than on a counter top can reduce the risk of attracting pests.
Certified food managers should consider both pros and cons when choosing between self-service and attended service for selling quick-serve products. We want to know which style your establishment uses and why it works to help you with this decision.
