Food Safety Training
When Australian food regulators first discussed food handler skills and knowledge requirements in the 1990’s it was agreed they need to be competent in the tasks they perform to lift the standards of food safety and reduce food borne illness rates.
Since then, most food service operations have provided their food handling employees with basic generic online compliance (and frontline leaders with HACCP principles) training with the expectation employees will learn the information by rote and then be tested to see what they can recall.
There is also a view a manager can “prove” food safety compliance with completed hardcopy paperwork, Learning Management System or Human Resources Systems.
This approach does not satisfy food law requirements and manage your business risk.
The best way to prove food handlers (and managers) are competent is when they can demonstrate an understanding of the food safety hazards associated with their work and know how to control those hazards.
Managers must be able to demonstrate this is being done on a consistent basis. It’s not your paperwork or food safety management system which does this. In the event of a food safety incident, it’s about the actions taken by your food handlers and what they say.
The safety of your customers must be of paramount importance. So too is brand protection and reputation.
Want further information? Contact Andrew Thomson on 0422285720.