Health and safety in the restaurant industry are essential and can affect the success of your business should you not take them seriously. The majority of issues that restaurants tend to face are preventable but sometimes are not dealt with in time or have not been identified.
This guide will highlight some of the potential risks and responsibilities that you should adhere to as well as any arrangements that should be in place to make sure your restaurant is complicit with health and safety regulations.
Evaluate the size of your space
With numerous staff being confined to a relatively small space, there’s an increased risk of accidents occurring. As it’s not always possible to expand the size of this area, it’s important to facilitate communication, especially if dangerous items are to be handled.
One way of combatting this is to ask each staff member to announce their whereabouts or if they plan to change position. The same goes for wandering around the room with heavy or boiling hot objects.
Provide employees with protective clothing
Since slips, trips and falls are the most prevalent accidents in the workplace, it’s important you understand how to keep both your employees and customers safe, or you may find that they seek compensation.
Kitchen members should be provided with slip-resistant footwear to avoid these types of accidents. They should also be given a suitable jacket that is breathable but also provides protection from the heat of the kitchen.
Make it common practice to clean up any spills or clutter from surfaces as soon as they appear. Appropriate signage should be placed near the areas as well to notify passers-by of the potential hazard.
Understand how to prepare food safely
One of the largest concerns in the food industry is cross-contamination. This is where harmful bacteria and germs are spread between equipment, surfaces and food.
Any prevalent issues in this area can lead to your restaurant being shut down or customers becoming unwell, so it’s highly important that you and your employees are aware of basic food safety. Remember, just one bad review can be highly detrimental to your business.
Every kitchen should know to keep raw meats and poultry in a separate area to produce, and all surfaces should be disinfected when handling raw meat. When storing and cooking food, aim to keep it on ice or warmers to help limit the growth of bacteria.
If a customer has an allergy, this must be taken seriously. All surfaces must be sanitised before use and all food kept separate from the allergen – if present in the room. An allergic reaction can be life or death, so understanding the correct procedure for dealing with these is advised.
