Food safety is continually in the news, with products being recalled from stores, restaurants and even schools. For vendors in the food and beverage industry, food safety presents a very real concern. Few companies, especially those just starting out, can afford costly recalls or potential lawsuits, due to lack of food safety.

If you are in the business of manufacturing or selling food products, then food safety and testing should be a routine part of your operation. Food safety tests can help prevent food-borne illnesses from reaching customers. It can also prevent costly recalls and potential lawsuits. Food safety testing companies help restaurants and food businesses in a variety of ways, including:

1. Food safety audits;

2. Food safety inspection; and

3. Implementing food safety guidelines.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Understand what constitutes food health and safety

Any vendor who sells food or beverages, from restaurants to stores, needs to understand what it means to be food safe. Knowing the correct temperatures for cold and hot food storage, as well as knowing how long food can be stored before spoiling are the first steps in making sure a business is practicing good food safety.

I recommend: HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point) is the system used in restaurants and other food service areas to ensure that proper precautions are being taken to prevent problems. Check out the FDA website for government guidelines for restaurants and commercial kitchens.

Send products out for food testing

Many companies provide highly rigorous food testing to ensure food safety. Companies test for things like pathogens and bacteria such as listeria monocytogenes, pseudomonas aeruginosa, salmonella enterica and staphylococcus aureus.

I recommend: Applied Biosystems offers a convenient food safety test tube kit that offers quick results. FSS Corp is another company which provides food testing, as well as food safety inspections and audits, hazard analysis critical control plan (HACCP) and certifications and even pest control audits.

Train your staff to practice proper food health and safety

All the food safety practices in the world won't do a business any good if its employees don't know how to follow them. Restaurants, with a notoriously high turnover rate, always have new employees who may or may not be familiar with food safety. There are many programs for new and existing employees that can be completed in as little as one day.

I recommend: FoodSafe.com provides food safety tests and audits which identify priority issues, non-compliance issues and suggestions for food safety improvement. ServSafe.com is a leading training program for food industry workers. ServSafe classes are held all over the United States, and certification is good for 2 years.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Food safety testing companies can also help with the layout of food manufacturing plants and factories.