Food Safety: Company Fined For Serious Burns

Food Safety A food company was charged with a  $110,000 fine and ordered to pay WorkCover’s legal costs after a 19-year-old apprentice chef suffered serious burns at a CBD restaurant.

SG Foodservice will face charges for the September 2010 incident which resulted in an apprentice chef burning 60 per cent of his body.

The apprentice chef was carrying boiling stock in two 20 litre buckets between floors via the fire escape when he slipped and fell, dropping the buckets. SG Foodservice was charged with a breach of the Occupational Health & Safety Act 2000.

WorkCover began an investigation which has since revealed that

• It was common place in the business to transport boiling hot stock in buckets via the firestairs.
• Previously, other staff members had fallen while using the fire escape on at least two separate occasions.
• it was unclear  among staff over whether the nearby elevator was free to use for  staff or only for guests.
• After the incident SG Foodservice prohibited the use of the firestairs to transport hot stock, instead requiring that stock be transported via the lift.

The court found that the risk to the injured person was so foreseeable that an accident was bound to happen.

SG Foodservice pleaded guilty to the charge and was fined $110,000.

WorkCover NSW’s acting General Manager of Work Health and Safety Division Peter Dunphy said“Working in the hospitality industry involves a lot of manual handling, especially in commercial kitchens which can be dangerous if risks to health and safety are not made the top priority,” he said.

“WorkCover will work with the company to ensure that the same mistakes are not made in the future.”

More info on Food Safety Supervisor Training

Source: http://www.workcover.nsw.gov.au/aboutus/newsroom/Pages/Companyfined$110,000afterseriousburnsataCBDrestaurant.aspx

 

Food Safety Supervisor: It’s Good For Your Health To Be Safe

There is nothing worse than having been slightly liberal with your wallet on a beautiful 5-star restaurant meal (trying to impress the significant other! )… only to wake up in the middle of the night with a burning, unbearable pain in the stomache. That sharp pain  feels like a swift punch in the belly by Mike Tyson…but its not from that. You hurriedly think to your self ” It can’t be the cereal I had this morning! I THINK that sandwhich meat for lunch was fine.. so it could only be— NO! Why?! Why did I have to spend so much money on this meal, and experiment to be “exciting!”…Why?!

But it’s not always your fault, and it’s not always the mysterious, exotic dish’s fault… Sometime’s things go wrong, and someone is to blame.

It is imperative that  food business owners in Victoria  ensure  that their staff  are adequately skilled and knowledgeable enough to  safely handle food in their respective roles. It is therefore important for  food businesses  to elect a food safety supervisor to make sure of this.

What? A Food Safety Supervisor? What’s that?

A FSS  is someone who:

  • Is able to easily recognise, prevent and eliminate food handling hazards at the food business
  •  has earned a Statement of Attainment that declares that they have the required food safety competencies from a Registered Training Organisation (RTO);
  • has the ability and authority to supervise other people handling food at the premises and ensure that food handling is done safely.

What type of  Food Businesses Need FSS?

Only class 1 and class 2 food premises require a  food safety supervisor.

Food poisoning most often occurs upon consumption of  “potentially hazardous food” such as meat, seafood, cooked main meals and sandwiches. In addition, persons with weakened or immature immune systems suffer a greater risk of serious illness or death from food poisoning.

Class 1 and class 2 businesses therefore require a food safety supervisor. However a food safety supervisor is not required for class 1 and class 2 food premises which use a whole-of-business food safety program prepared under a recognised Quality Assurance (QA) system, and that program includes competency-based or accredited staff training. Such a system is an alternative means of educating staff about how to handle food safety.

Class 3 and class 4 food premises do not require a food safety supervisor as the nature of the food handled at those premises is not commonly associated with food poisoning. However, these businesses must still ensure that they maintain safe food handling practices.

All food premises (businesses and community groups) that sell food are legally required to ensure that it is safe for human consumption, regardless of the premises food safety supervisor requirements.

The Importance of Food Safety Supervisors

Food Safety Supervisors aim to prevent individuals from becoming ill as a result of food poisoning.  According to the Australian Health Department, approximately 5.4 Australians suffer from food-related illnesses annually from products contaminated with bacteria or viruses.

Considering Australia has one of the safest food supplies worldwide, this number is staggering. It is the working relationship between food manufacturers, food handlers, government regulators and  quality training programs that Australia can boast a safe food supply but regardless of strong efforts, the need for continuous safety training is ever present.Individuals must be knowledgeable in the proper methods to treat and handle food because a lack of proper information can result in sickness or death.  So how does one limit the number food contamination that results in sickness? Food Safety Supervisors.

What is a food safety supervisor?

A food safety supervisor is someone who:

  •  is trained to determine and prevent food handling risks at your premises.
  • has earned a Statement of Attainment that shows they are capable and qualified to fulfill required food safety competencies from Registered Training Organisations such as AlertForce.
  • has the knowledge, capability and authority to supervise other workers in the correct handling of food at the premises, thus ensuring safe food handling.

Choosing the right food safety supervisor for your business

When choosing a food safety supervisor one must be advised to do so carefully. A food safety supervisor can be the owner, an employee or an external person to the establishment. They must however, be able to meet the food safety supervisor requirements under the Food Act.

When choosing a FSS it is important to choose someone with the following attributes:

One must maintain that their food safety supervisor has everything  needed to be fully capable at  performing the role at your business. This means that:

  • Requirements are clearly and concisely laid out in the job description.
  • Responsibilities and role requirements are clearly apparent to the individual
  • They have received relevant appropriate training from a reputable and approved training organisation.
  • they are provided time in  their working day to perform FSS tasks.
  •  They are capable of supervising other workers within the establishment and the staff are aware of their title/job.
  • They are prepared and capable in the event that your business encounters any food safety issues.
A FSS is not required to be present on the premises at all times but they must be aware of the food handling methods being implemented when the FSS is not present. This also applies when a person outside of the business has been assigned the FSS role.

One cannot overstate the importance of food safety supervisors and more specifically, hiring a good FSS. It may not only save litigation, time and stress, but also lives.

AlertForce Launches NSW Food Safety Supervisor Training

Australia’s Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) training company, AlertForce, has recently launched online supervisor training that will enable participants to adhere to the new Food Authority laws that have recently been passed.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRLog (Press Release) – Sep 07, 2011 – In light of the new NSW Food Authority laws, Food Safety Supervisor training is now mandatory for any business that handles or serves food. The deadline to receive this training is October 1st. Any food – serving business that fails to meet the deadline is subject to a $660 fine.

Since the training is online (https://alertforce.com.au/food-supervisor-safety/), participants will be able to engage in the program at their own speed and convenience. The courses will be essential for anyone working in a business that delivers food in most states of Australia. Successful Participants will also receive a Food Safety Supervisor certificate from Access Group Training (NTIS 90867).

AlertForce’s complete FSS training is composed of two elements. The first component is the Accredited Food Supervisors Certificate (Implement food safety procedures), while the second component is the Accredited Food Handlers Certificate (Follow Workplace Hygiene Procedures). These courses are delivered in commercial partnership by Access Group Training (NTIS 90867) who are on the NSW Food Authority approved list and issue government certificates.

“AlertForce’s food safety courses help you meet your food handling requirements with maximum ease at minimum cost. Now with these new laws it is imperative for food-serving businesses to receive our quality Food Safety training to avoid subsequent fines!” says Brendan Torazzi, AlertForce company founder.

Upon completion of the FSS training, participants will be receive their certificate in the mail, which they can then post to inform others that they are skilled in food handling and can manage other food handlers in commercial settings.

# # #

AlertForce specialises in delivering fast, competency-based OHS training through interactive short online courses to mitigate risk and health and safety hazards in Australian workplaces.
View Original PR here: http://www.prlog.org/11649935-alertforce-launches-nsw-food-safety-supervisor-training.html

Important food safety supervisor information – hazards of bacteria

If you are a food safety supervisor, you will need to do your food safety supervisor training. This food safety training will qualify you to handle food as well as manage other food handlers in commercial settings.

A food safety supervisor needs to understand food hazards, including bacteria. Did you know that bacteria are the most common cause of food poisoning? While some bacteria are actually beneficial, others can cause food to go off, known as spoilage bacteria. Bacteria are found everywhere. In fact there is not a place on Earth where bacteria are not found.

Bacteria are very small living organisms known as micro-organisms. They are made up of a single cell and a cell membrane. Look at your hands: you will not be able to tell that right now there are over one million bacteria on them.

More bacteria mean greater risk. Controlling the number of bacteria, particularly harmful bacteria, is the first step in preventing serious illness from contamination. Your food safety supervisor training will equip you with the knowledge do this.

Whatever their shape or size, all bacteria live, grow and multiply. They live and grow by absorbing their food and water through their membrane and excreting their waste products back through this membrane.

Sometimes, the bacteria themselves are toxic but it’s also the process of growing and the waste they produce that cause food poisoning and food spoilage.

Bacteria need specific conditions to live grow and multiply. In the right conditions, bacteria will grow very quickly and can divide into 2 in about 15 minutes.

Without water, bacteria stop growing and can die. In fact bacteria themselves are made up of mostly water.

Have you ever wondered why dried & salted foods were common before refrigeration? Salting removes moisture through a process called osmosis, creating an environment in which bacteria cannot survive.

Living things need protein. Without a food source such as protein, bacteria cannot survive.

Can you guess which foods bacteria will thrive in? Moist foods, with a neutral pH that are high in protein. These are potentially hazardous foods because bacteria can live, grow and multiply to dangerous numbers.

Foods that have the right conditions to support bacterial growth and that may contain harmful or pathogenic bacteria are termed ‘high risk foods’.

High-risk foods include:

Seafood, meat and small goods, poultry, dairy and egg-based foods, soups, stock and sauces, fruits (including rockmelon, watermelon, blueberries and fruit salad), pre-made salads, pate and soft cheeses, ice-cream, cooked rice and pasta.

Consider this: it can take as little as 4 and half hours for 10 bacteria to multiply into over 1.3 million in ideal conditions. With potentially millions of bacteria on dirty hands alone, and one thousand on a single hair, food left uncovered or unrefrigerated is easily spoiled or contaminated by bacteria.

Did you know that the bacteria in milk can survive pasteurisation and still cause a carton of unopened milk to go off?

For further important food safety information, supervisors should complete their food safety supervisor training online to meet their compliance training obligations.

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