November 2021
In order to keep our clients safe and healthy, food enjoyed at our dining locations all around the world goes through a critical process of food safety. This process includes transport, handling, and storage from plant to plate.
Three major areas that in-house corporate dining locations must prioritize to ensure high food safety are temperature, sanitation, and food handling. Even before COVID, we’ve always had a very strict process in place at our dining locations globally, to make sure that our team follows all food safety regulations.
Food temperature is a vital element of food safety. Perishable foods such as meat, fish, poultry, and produce have strict refrigeration guidelines. Daily checklists are a great way to make sure dining locations follow protocol regarding food temperature. To make sure refrigerator doors stay closed, we use alarms. All of our dining locations instill systems in place in case of a power outage. Today, there is technology available in the market which checks the temperature of perishable food products 24/7.
Temperature is not only essential when storing goods, but also when serving. We must serve certain foods, such as fresh fruit, vegetables, dairy products, as well as raw meat and fish at cold temperatures. Cooked dishes, on the other hand, are served hot; even the slightest temperature change can endanger diners. We use special surfaces to make sure raw food stays cold and cooked food stays hot.
By applying vital food safety practices, in-house dining locations can continue to operate smoothly and provide fresh food daily, farm-to-table.
In addition to food temperature, food handling has always been a strict process at our corporate dining locations to assure that our team follows all food safety measures.
The biggest concern in food handling is the separation of foods to prevent cross-contamination. Raw meats and poultry are always separate from fresh produce. In fact, we select all products from the finest vendors. We handle all produce using gloves and place it in special containers. Our food handlers, who are trained to enforce strict guidelines, clean and inspect the containers.
This is just how the food gets stored, before the strict policies we have in place for when we enter the kitchen.
From harvest to plate, food sanitation is a critical component for a corporate in-house food program.
The key to food sanitation is keeping food safe and clean, with all food handlers complying with the necessary rules. These rules include monitoring the fridge temperature, safe cooking temperatures; sterilization and frequently washing utensils, food handlers that use gloves and masks and expiration dates.
Food prep areas must be constantly sanitized and washed. Food storage areas protect food from cross-contamination.
Even though we adhere to all food safety regulations, we have safety measures in place. This is where food sampling comes in. Our team saves samples of every dish served at our dining locations for three days. In case of contamination, samples are sent to a lab that examines the sample.
Most importantly, we have a food safety consultant, which performs surprise inspections monthly in our sites. These inspections are crucial in making sure our team adheres to the strictest food safety guidelines, and shed light on where our weak spots may be. They also evaluate our teams and provide courses on new regulations.
From farm to table, food goes through a meticulous process, to make sure it is healthy and safe for guests in our dining locations.