Most of us like to get out and enjoy good food – whether we want to be wined and dined at a special restaurant, or we want to enjoy a takeaway at home, having the food prepared for us means that we can just relax and enjoy it. However, there is also the element of trust that we put into other people to ensure that the food that we are eating has been prepared safely and hygienically.
There are lots of illnesses, some quite serious, which we can get if we eat food that is contaminated or has been incorrectly prepared. However, in the UK we do have strict guidelines as well as people like these food safety consultants https://mqmconsulting.co.uk/ to help us ensure that the food we are eating is not going to be a risk to our health.
So, what does a food safety consultant actually do? In a nutshell, they work with a business to help them to ensure that they are compliant with the Food Hygiene and Safety Regulations 2013, as well as the 1990 Food Safety act.
A consultant will cover all sorts of things when they go into a food preparation business – they will want to know about who supplies the food and the ingredients to ensure that they are also compliant with the hygiene and safety standards, as well as where the food is stored, how it is prepared and what things are in place to make sure that all of this is done correctly.
Some of these include:
Staff Training – In order for the food to be prepared and stored correctly, the staff who work there will need to be trained in hygiene practices. Training records of staff will confirm that they have received the right training to be doing their job properly.
Pest Control – Something that will often be found near food are pests, rats, mice and flies are all commonly found lurking near areas where there is a lot of food. Unfortunately, they can spread diseases, so it is important that there are measures in place to keep them away.
Maintenance – In order to make sure that the storage and preparation areas are effective, the equipment needs to be well maintained and cared for correctly.