How to store food safely in your hospitality business.

This article has been written by Pilla Founder, Liam Jones, click to email Liam directly, he reads every email.

It is essential that different types of foods are stored separately under different storage conditions to maintain both the safety and the quality of the food. Food contains harmful bacteria which can cause food poisoning and illness but if you store food properly then this risk can be decreased. The following food storage tips and guidelines should be followed to ensure that foods are not exposed to unnecessary hazards and/or risks.

Refrigerated/chilled foods

Certain foods must be stored in a refrigerator to keep them microbiologically safe up to the use by date as issued by the manufacturer or from in house preparation guidelines issued by the food standards agency. Chilled storage slows down the rate of multiplication of harmful bacteria in the food, even cooked food still contains tiny amounts of bacteria. Foods that must be kept in a refrigerator are

•All foods with a use by date or are highly perishable foods
•Prepared foods that will not be served immediately
•Cooked food cooled down for future cold service or reheating
•Ready to eat foods (RTE)-Raw foods intended for consumption without prior heat treatment
•Prewashed salad
•Foods with best before dates after opening (follow manufacturer’s instructions for safe use)
•Pasteurised products such as milk, orange juice also some types of canned meat
•Food that is being defrosted (extra care must be taken if raw, see guidelines below)

Refrigerated storage

Check fridge /chiller temperatures frequently and record. Target temperature is below 5°c, but the critical limit 8°c. If this is exceeded carry out corrective measures and record. Ensure total separation of raw food from ready to eat food/cooked food at all times, ideally in separate units. Use the pre-built fridge temperature task inside Pilla to record and record fridge temperatures inline with the further chilled food procedures.

Label all foods with use by/best before dates and allergen information. Only use food grade containers/packaging materials. Do not leave half empty cans/tins in fridge, decant into lidded container. Rotate stock every day, use FIFO system i.e. First in first out, checking use by dates frequently. Do not overfill fridge, allow gaps between foods and do not let food touch the sides or the back of the fridge. Do not allow hot foods to be cooled by using the fridge, allow hot foods to cool to room temperature before storing in fridge.

Frozen storage

Check freezer temperature frequently and record. Target temperature below -18°c, critical limit -15°c. If this is exceeded carry out corrective measures and record. Ensure total separation of raw food from ready to eat food/cooked food at all times, ideally in separate units. Upright freezers should be used rather than chest freezers.

Use the pre-built freezer temperature task inside Pilla to record and record fridge temperatures inline with the further frozen food procedures.

Cover/wrap all foods adequately to prevent freezer burn. Only use food grade containers/packaging materials. Label all decanted/prepared foods with use by/best before dates and allergen information.Rotate stock every day, use FIFO system i.e. First in first out, checking use by dates frequently. Do not hold excessive stock levels as stock rotational procedures can be compromised.

Do not overfill freezer, allow gaps between foods and do not let food touch the sides or the back of the freezer. Do not allow hot foods to be cooled by using the freezer, allow hot foods to cool to room temperature before storing in freezer.

Raw products

Raw food like meat, fish, poultry will potentially have harmful bacteria in them naturally as they are high protein and moist and therefore easily support the growth of bacteria. You do not want the levels of bacteria in the raw meat to increase as toxins may be produced which may present further hazards, so the raw food must also be kept refrigerated to ensure the growth of harmful bacteria remains relatively static until the food can be cooked to destroy harmful bacteria to a point that the food can be safely consumed. These products will also have use by dates on their labels.

These products must be stored separately from other foods and if possible in separate fridges, they must be adequately wrapped/contained to prevent drip contamination.

Ready to eat or cooked foods such as cooked meats, must be kept separated from raw products including eggs and vegetables at all times.

RTE/cooked foods should always have adequate coverings/containers/cling film/foil etc. as these foods will not undergo any further processes that would make them safe to eat, they are therefore extremely vulnerable to contamination.

Raw foods must also be contained to prevent direct, indirect and drip contamination of RTE/cooked foods.Ideally raw foods should be stored in separate fridges, if this is not possible, then they should be stored at the bottom of the fridge and cooked/RTE foods stored near to the top of the fridge.

Prepared and batch cooked foods

Batch cooked and prepared foods must be appropriately date marked. Foods for refrigeration only must be given a use by date indicating two days after the preparation day i.e. Cooked Monday, use by Wednesday. Frozen cooked products can be given a shelf life of one month i.e. Prepped/cooked 15th June, use by 15th July. These guidelines only apply as long as the products have been stored under the correct temperature control conditions. If the critical temperature limits of frozen food or chilled food have been breached during storage the product may require immediate use or need to be discarded.

Opened and decanted food

Once a hermetically sealed packet / jar / pouch / tin has been opened allowing oxygen in, then decanted into another container, then it must be immediately labelled, refrigerated and used by the date marked on the original packaging. Original contents must be indicated on the new label for the purposes of allergen management.

Canned food once opened, must not be stored in the original can, but decanted into a food safe plastic lidded container. The manufacturer’s instructions must then be followed.

Metal utensils must not be left in acidic foods as trace metal contamination can occur, acidic foods in addition can be very damaging to certain metals causing them to react creating poisonous compounds as well as making metal brittle.

Ambient / Dry storage

Food must not be stored directly on floors or touching walls in a dry store, as, they can pick up moisture which will potentially compromise the safety and quality of the products. Dry stores should ideally use racking, enabling a sufficient air flow around the products. They should be checked regularly for pest contamination, activity and ingress. Ideally stores should be cool and dry, ensure these environmental conditions are maintained.

Use by date and best before date

Use by dates on foods must be checked daily, chefs should manage their stock levels and fridges to ensure efficient stock rotation to avoid wasted food. Any foods that have exceeded the use by date must be removed from the storage area to a designated area, labelled clearly as “not for consumption”, it should be disposed of as food waste or returned to the supplier (if possible).

If EHO find food that has exceeded its use by date in a fridge during an inspection, they will assume the food was going to be used and an emergency hygiene prohibition notice may be issued which may lead to closure of the business.

Best before dates allocated to low risk and dry/ambient foods refer to quality of the product rather than the safety of the product. If these foods have been stored under the correct storage conditions the date gives an approximate guarantee of quality up to that date, the quality cannot be guaranteed after that date, although it may still be safe to eat.

Best before dates should be checked regularly and stock rotated appropriately to ensure no wastage occurs. Food past its best before date can still be sold as long as the customer is made aware that the quality may be compromised.Some manufactured high-risk products that have been canned/sterilized/ultra-heat treated may be treated as low risk products and stored under dry/ambient conditions with a best before date. However, once opened they must be treated as high risk products and used immediately.

Storage separation

Ready to eat or cooked foods must be kept separated from raw products including eggs and vegetables at all times.

Shelving/Racking

Maintain shelving and racking and keep in good condition. Aim to purchase good quality food grade stainless steel shelving and racking as this is easily cleaned and disinfected as well as being hardwearing, non-porous, non-flaking etc.

Covering food

Foods should be covered to protect them at all times to prevent contamination from microbiological, allergenic, physical and chemical sources.The covering of food with cloths/tea towels should be discouraged as fibres can carry contamination.

Foods, if wrapped, must be wrapped in food grade coverings where the food will not react with the covering. You must check manufacturer’s instructions as some food coverings are not suitable to be used with certain foods e.g. Cling film with high oil / fat products or tin foil with highly acidic products e.g. Rhubarb, soft fruit

Foods decanted into lidded containers, ensure they are food grade containers. Food grade containers if not in use must be stored inverted to prevent contamination.

Corrective actions if things go wrong

•Re-organise storage space or arrange extra/alternative storage space
•If food has been labelled incorrectly a responsible person should consider discarding the food.
•Food that has just become cross contaminated by bacteria, can, immediately be cooked/reheated or if longer term, then discarded.
•An allergen free meal, if contaminated must be discarded immediately.
•Any food suspected of come into contact with pests or pest contamination must be labelled, quarantined and discarded. Keep a record of this.
•Food handlers not following the safety points must be retrained and /or increase supervision if necessary.

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