When preparing food for the public, safety is the utmost importance. After all, your customers’ health is at stake. This article will highlight several precautions that will help maintain safety in any and all of the food service industries.

Wear Adequate Protection

Those preparing food need to wear adequate protection to prevent the spread of germs. This means wearing hairnets, to prevent hair follicles from falling into food. It also means wearing food service gloves, to prevent germs from spreading from your hands to the food. Food service gloves are not tight like latex gloves, but are light and breathable. This allows you to perform all the repetitive manual tasks associated with food prep, without any hindrance. It is important to change your gloves whenever they are soiled, and especially if they get torn in any way. It is also important to wash your hands before handling food, even if you are about to put disposable gloves on.

Sanitize Your Equipment

Another huge health hazards that all restaurants must minimize is cross contamination. Cross contamination can lead to serious, even fatal, illnesses. This is why it is so important that all equipment and surfaces are cleaned and disinfected after each use. If you have a slicer, clean it after each use. When you use knives to cut meat, clean them thoroughly before cutting vegetables. After cutting meat on a cutting board, wash it down before cutting something else on it. These are basic health and safety standards, but unfortunately many kitchens do not adhere to these standards.

Keep The Food Prep Area Clean

Another reason that you need to keep your food prep area clean is that it will keep mice, rats, roaches, and other vermin out of your restaurant. Not only do these creatures spread diseases, but if even one is discovered by a customer, it can be very bad for business. This is why floors should be swept and mopped regularly, and all food particles should be cleaned up. Food should also be properly stored, to prevent mice and other critters from getting into it. This will help keep your restaurant free of pests and diseases.

Adhere To The Expiration Dates

If you walk into a random restaurant kitchen, you might be shocked at how many items are kept past their expiration date. We understand the temptation: wasted food is wasted money, and restaurant owners are often loath to throw food away. That being said, food that is past its prime should never be served to customers. Doing so can greatly increase the risk of foodborne illness. Expiration dates are printed on the labels for your convenience, and your customers’ safety. Adhere to them.

Display Adequate Signage

It is important to display adequate signage throughout the restaurant, for the safety of your customers. For example “wet floor” signs need to be put out after the floor has been mopped. This will alert patrons to be careful when walking, and will minimize the risk of slip and fall injuries.