If you are selling food as part of your business, you need to make sure that you, and your staff, have the relevant food safety training before you start.

This training must be kept up to date, so if it’s been a while since you were trained, it’s worth considering a refresher course to help you manage others and make sure you are fully compliant with food safety regulations.
Food safety training is not only a legal requirement but has great benefits for your business. Your staff will feel more confident preparing and handling food, your customers will be more satisfied and you will have peace of mind knowing that the food you are serving to your customers is not only delicious, but safe. Training all your staff on food safety not only benefits your business, but creates opportunities for them to achieve professional qualifications as well and feel more valued.

Food safety qualifications are available at different levels and some are specific for different sectors to ensure that the training is relevant to your business. There are different courses depending on whether you are simply storing and selling food; manufacturing food, for example in a factory; or whether you are a restaurant or caterer preparing food on the premises.

The basic food safety courses cover legislation; food safety and hygiene; temperature control; correct refrigeration and cooling processes; cooking, reheating and storing hot food; food handling; safe food storage and keeping premises and equipment clean. More advance courses include management of staff and complying with legislation. Most courses take place over one or two days and are assessed through a multiple-choice examination.
Don’t forget understanding the basics of food hygiene is essential to all members of staff, including the kitchen assistant preparing the salads to the hands-off manager who needs to ensure the business complies with food safety legislation.

The implications for not having suitable training in place are huge. If the worst should happen and one of your customers comes down with food poisoning after eating your food you will find yourself at the sharp end of an investigation into your premises and food handling practices. Not only is this immensely damaging to your reputation but you could also face financial and legal penalties. Should you be found negligent in this area you could face your business being closed down, a hefty fine, or in the most extreme cases, even a prison sentence.