Food Safety 101 For Convenience Stores
The most commonly reported cause of foodborne illnesses is time-temperature abuse, according to the National Restaurant Association Education Foundation.
Take a look around your store and what do you see? Packaged foods. Fresh food. Food cooked on the premises. Perhaps even a place for your customers to sit down and eat their food. In other words, food is definitely a big part of your business. As such, you have a responsibility to assure customers that the food you prepare, stock and/or serve is as safe as possible.
According to the National Restaurant Association Education Foundation, the most commonly reported cause of foodborne illnesses is time-temperature abuse. Daydots, a manufacturer and distributor of food safety solutions, offers the following tips to help convenience stores keep its food safe for consumers.
- Do not leave food in the temperature danger zone (41 to 135 degrees Fahrenheit) for more than four hours.
- Assign someone to check the temperature of time-sensitive foods when they arrive, before they are received and stored. If the temperatures register in the danger zone, the food should not be accepted and the supplier should be made aware of the problem so they can prevent it from happening in the future.
- Avoid overloading the refrigerator because it diminishes airflow and makes the unit work harder to maintain the correct temperature.
- Check food temperature regularly by randomly selecting a sample of food from different locations throughout the refrigerator. This ensures the temperature is correct and consistent.
- Do not place hot or warm food in the refrigerator as this may increase the temperature and put other foods in the temperature danger zone.
- Rotate food regularly using the FIFO (First In, First Out) system. All containers should be clearly marked with the contents and the “use-by” date. The shelf life of each product must also be tracked.
- Never refreeze thawed food unless it has been cooked thoroughly, as multiple thawings may lower the quality and compromise the safety of the food.
- Keep the storeroom cool, dry, out of direct sunlight and well-ventilated. Monitor the temperature of the storeroom regularly to ensure that it is between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Set up shelving at least six inches off the floor and six inches from the wall to limit access to food by pests and rodents.
- Check the internal temperatures of all products before they are served.
- Use the two-stage method to properly cool food. Foods should be cooled from 135 degrees Fahrenheit to 70 degrees within two hours and then to 41 degrees or lower in an additional four hours.
- Remind customers of proper handling of leftovers by labeling all take-out containers with recommendations on proper storage and reheating.
