Food has a significant say in bettering or worsening health conditions. That is why authorities impose a set of regulations on restaurants to ensure food safety. These standards are carefully designed to ensure customers’ well-being.
As a restaurant owner or manager, you need to abide by these codes to improve food safety practices and evade legal consequences. There are several ways to follow the health code. For instance, you can implement a strict policy regarding safe food storage and cleansing schedules.
Make sure that all your employees wash their hands properly before and after handling each task. Do you want to learn more? Keep reading the article, as it will explain top tips to avoid health code violations in restaurants.
6 Effective Tips for Following Health Codes in Restaurants
A restaurant revolves around multiple routine jobs that can directly or indirectly impact customers’ health. These include ingredient storage, cooking, food handling, sanitation, waste management, and employee hygiene. The health code requires eateries to handle these operations carefully so that clients’ wellness can be ensured. Monitoring pest control, disposing of waste properly, and consulting a hospitality consultant can help in this regard. Let’s focus on the six effective tips for following health codes in restaurants:
1. Store Food Properly
Your food storage approach directly influences the health of your customers. That is why taking immense care while storing ingredients is of utmost importance. If you do not store food properly, the risk of cross-contamination and foodborne illnesses will increase, resulting in the violation of health codes.
You should refrigerate foods at a proper temperature after labeling and dating each product. Implement a “first in, first out” approach to avoid expiration or spoilage. Keep all the ingredients covered and use precisely cleaned utensils. Seeking help from an expert can be beneficial for this purpose. People contact professionals at a restaurant consulting company in Dubai to achieve the milestone.
2. Keep a Strict Cleaning Schedule
Most restaurants fail to comply with health standards due to the lack of a cleansing schedule. Ignoring this critical factor is one of the top contributing factors behind cross-contamination. When your staff does not follow a cleansing schedule, the buildup of detrimental microbes and allergens can increase.
You should devise a comprehensive list containing various cleansing tasks on a priority basis. Assign cleansing responsibilities based on your employees’ experience and expertise. Using the right cleaning products and monitoring each activity is critical. It is also important to train your team members for effective cleansing practices and strategies.
3. Ensure Handwashing Compliance
Did you know there are more or less 1400 known species of viruses, bacteria, and other organisms categorized as human pathogens? These organisms are spread across the globe, and poor handwashing practices can facilitate their transport from our hands to food.
That is why ensuring handwashing compliance is one of the six effective tips for following health codes in restaurants. It is the best way to promote food safety in your establishment, protect your customers’ health, and meet legal requirements. Installing visible handwashing stations and incorporating a hand hygiene policy can be helpful in this matter.
Read also: Uncovering the Top 5 Pocket-Friendly Restaurants in Dubai
4. Monitor Pest Control
Any life form that can damage and contaminate food, causing diseases, is called a pest. Pest control is an approach that revolves around managing and preventing the presence of pests in an eatery. If you fail to control pests, the consequences can vary from food contamination to illnesses and health code violations. Here is how you can monitor pest control in your restaurant:
- Hire a pest control professional.
- Schedule routine inspections
- Make sure proper food storage
- Seal entry points of pests like rodents
- Keep outdoor areas cleaned
In addition, educating your staff and implementing traps can also be helpful tactics. This will be a perfect strategy to avoid health code violations.
5. Dispose of Waste Correctly
In an eatery, there can be a lot of discarded or uneaten food, called waste. This waste usually includes leftovers, spoiled ingredients, expired items, and over-prepared products. Remember, improperly disposed waste can be inviting for pests and microbes. That is why never ignore the importance of correct waste disposal.
Separating waste into various categories, using sealed containers, and maintaining outdoor areas are some of the important practices. You should also focus on training your employees in waste disposal. Identify and incorporate waste reduction opportunities like portion control and inventory management.
6. Consult a Hospitality Consultant
What can be a better way to ensure health code compliance than acquiring help from an expert? A hospitality consultant is a trained professional who can help you evade food safety violations. Employing a consultant can be an advantageous approach for the following reasons:
- Conducting comprehensive audits
- Ensuring precise inventory management
- Devising and implementing a food safety policy
- Streamlining waste management systems
- Monitoring pest control
In addition, a consultant can also train your employees on hygiene practices. It is important to hire the right individual for this job. You can reach out to experts at a restaurant consulting company in Dubai to effectively follow all the regulations implemented by authorities.
Ensure Health Code Compliance in Your Eatery Now
A health code is a set of rules designed by governments to protect customers’ health in restaurants. Storing food properly, keeping a strict cleansing schedule, and disposing of waste correctly are crucial in this regard. Contact a reputable restaurant consultant to ensure health code compliance in your eatery now.
