This week the Food Standards Agency (FSA) launched their national food hygiene rating scheme nationwide. Finally, there’s no need to be concerned about the standard of food from that dodgy burger van in town, your local Chinese takeaway or that grotty-looking greasy cafe in your village! Instead, you’ll be able to see the ‘scores on [...]
Tags: Food Hygiene, Food Safety, food standards agency, FSA
Dead cockroaches, mouse droppings and filthy kitchen equipment lead to a failed inspection for T.G.I Friday’s flagship branch in Covent Garden. The Covent Garden branch was closed down for six days last year, and in August the branch was ordered to pay a £30,000 fine after Environmental Health Officers found mouse droppings in a bag [...]
Tags: Bartender, Cockroaches, Environmental Health, Food Hygiene, Mice, Mouse Infestation, T.G.I Fridays
Unsafe levels of harmful bacteria were found in over half the clothes tested in a recent study by the Health Protection Agency (HPA). Dirty dishcloths can lead to severe cases of food poisoning if they’re not regularly changed or disinfected. High levels of bacteria on dishcloths can indicate poor food hygiene practices.
Tags: bacteria, cloths, Food Hygiene, HPA, Listeria
This week Starbucks has revealed plans to offer a range of NVQs to baristas working in their outlets in the UK. The training scheme, which will cost the company several million pounds, will improve customer experience, boost morale and help ease high levels of staff turn over, plus give staff a range of transferable skills [...]
Tags: Food Hygiene, NVQ, Starbucks
Food production giants, Premier Foods have been fined nearly 17,000 after a mouse was found baked into a loaf of its Hovis ‘Best of Both’ bread. Stephen Forse, a father of three young children, found the mouse crushed into the loaf while buttering bread to make sandwiches for his children. The animal’s tail was missing, [...]
Tags: Contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Safety, Hovis, Mice, Pests, Premier Foods
If you’re just starting out, the idea of ‘food hygiene’ can be a little daunting, perhaps even off-putting! There’s a shed load of laws, rules and regulations that you (and your staff) need to know. Get things right, and your business could be very successful – but get it wrong and you could face legal [...]
Tags: basic food hygiene, catering industry, Food Hygiene, the 4Cs
Imagine the following scenario: You’re on holiday in Bangkok. You see an authentic market selling delicious fruits at cheap prices. You’re hungry and the produce looks tempting. You go over and grab something to eat. But in this idyllic daydream, you’re probably not imagining the infested bacteria, antifungal agents or dangerous chemicals that are on [...]
Tags: bacteria, Bangkok, Chemicals, Food Hygiene, Food Safety, Fruit, Tourism
If you’ve scoffed at the pointless health and hygiene campaigns from the Food Standards Agency (FSA) (you know the ones, they tell us to ‘eat healthier snacks, cook turkey correctly and hilariously, drink beverages other than beer for World Cup matches) you’ll probably be outraged to learn how much those campaigns cost us, the taxpayer. [...]
Tags: Food Hygiene, FSA, Healthy Eating, Tax
How many icky germs are living in your dishcloth?
Tags: basic food hygiene, clean dishcloth, Food Hygiene, Food Safety
How do chefs keep their clothes so dazzlingly white?
Tags: chef's clothing, Food Hygiene, Food Safety