Serving food is a great way to entice customers into your establishment. Often, the smell alone is enough to get visitors to enter and consider spending money with you.
There are many different types of companies that serve food, ranging from traditional restaurants and cafes to small shops offering samples or bakeries selling fresh treats to go.
What all of these businesses have in common is that they need to ensure that their customers, and staff, are safe.
There are many regulations that apply to businesses serving food in the UK, which work to ensure that everyone is safe when businesses sell food directly to customers.
If you’re launching a new business serving food, or you want to pivot your existing organisation and start offering fresh dishes, then you need to be aware of some of the basics of food safety.
While every specific niche and type of food service business is unique, there are some aspects of food safety that are universal.
Here’s a brief overview of some of the vital pieces of safety equipment that every food provider needs.
Warning Labels
Every business serving food needs warning labels of some type. These could be to warn customers of hot surfaces or to let them know about potential allergens in certain products. Whatever you need, you need to make sure that you always have a selection of relevant warning labels handy. Label Source offers this range of warning labels to cover every eventuality, so you can get whatever you need from them and quickly stock up when you run low on a particular label.
Colour-Coded Utensils
Cross-contamination is a major issue in the food service and preparation sectors, which is why it’s vital that you clearly label the different utensils that employees need to use for each product. While you could use written labels, one easier method is to choose utensils that are colour-coded. You should choose items that are easily associated with the items that they are used for. For example, you could use red utensils for red meat, white utensils for white meat, and blue ones for fish. This approach will make it easier for your staff to instantly know which utensils to use when preparing or serving food items.
Fire Extinguishers
In any food preparation area where items are heating, you will need a fire extinguisher in case of an emergency. There are several different types of fire extinguishers available, each with a unique use, so you should do your research and find out which types you need and where. As well as a fire extinguisher, your property also needs to be fitted with smoke and fire alarms, as well as other fire safety tools such as fire blankets. Find out what you need and make sure it is easily accessible and regularly checked to ensure it works in case of a fire.
This list isn’t extensive, but it should give you an idea of how to get started when choosing safety equipment for your business that serves food.
