http://www.localmarkets.ie/Giveaways-33.html

This course is delivered by a Qualified Environmental Health Officer, and is certified by the Environmental Health Officer’s Association.

Date: Tuesday, 6th of March 2012
Duration; 1 day: 9am – 4.30pm
Location: The Killarney Park Hotel, Killarney, Co. Kerry.
Certification: Successful participants will be awarded a Certificate in Primary Food Hygiene (Level 2) which is valid for 5 years.
Who should attend: This course is intended for food handlers involved in the food industry in Ireland.
Aim of Course: The aim of this course is to provide food workers with adequate training in the basic principles of food safety. If you would like to gain valuable knowledge on the following topics – Introduction to Food Safety, Microbiological Hazards, Food Contamination, HACCP from Food Delivery to Storage, HACCP from Food Preparation to Cooking Service and Service, Personal Hygiene, Food Premises and Equipment, Pest Control, Cleaning and Disinfection, Food Safety Law and Enforcement please contact us on the number below.
There is a projected increase in tourist numbers in 2012 & we have to be ready & trained, as per legal requirement.

Cost: €110 per participant

Book Now:
Booking is essential as places are strictly limited- contact:
Helena O’Sullivan,
On 087 2356701 or email helena@marydaly.ie

Which or whether, in every walk of life problems can happen-it is how we handle these problems is what matters. Problems or complaints should be referred to the Manager. It is important to deal with a problem or complaint in a polite, professional and prompt manner. Never leave a customer fester, deal with a problem straight away.

Be honest! If there is going to be a delay tell the customer and apologies. Maybe a glass of wine could be offered at this stage!

Do not respond to anger or rudeness with anger.

A problem dealt with correctly can in fact turn out to your advantage.

We established a food safety consultancy in 2000 and to date none of our clients have had issues with product liability or litigation. The key is the correct handling of customer complaints.

So what steps must you take when a customer complains?

• Listen, ask questions.
• Identify the key points. Are they big or small issues or is it a series of issues?
• Sympathies say sorry and say you understand. Empathize!
• Thank the customer for bringing the problem to your attention.
• Explain what you are going to do( Refer the matter to your food safety consultant)
• Next opportunity- now follow up.

The above steps should be part of your Customer Complaints Procedure. Staff must be familiar with this procedure and trained to handle difficult situations & clients.

If a grievance is handled in this manner, the complainant will become an ambassador for your business. Believe me!

Mary

www.marydaly.ie

Written by Mary and kindly reproduced for LocalMarkets.ie

Valentine Night @ On The Pig’s Back Cafe!!

The Cork Fine Music Club presents: A Valentine date with Greenshine (Noel Shine, Mary Greene and Ellie Shine) for a night of Love songs and Murder ballads!

Tues 14th Feb 8pm: Adm: 10 euro. Booking Essential.

Bubbles, Wines & Chocolates available during and after the concert…

On the Pig’s Back Cafe-Deli
Unit26, St Patricks Mills,
Douglas,
CORK.
021 4617832 

If you are thinking about starting a new food business or extending your present operation-you might like to read the following points of information before proceeding. If you need clarification on any aspect, please contact our office for clarification. When you have a plan drawn up, refer to the local Environmental Health Officer for approval.

Registration is Free at the moment!

Size & Layout.

The Premises shall be of adequate size for the intended volume and range of foodstuffs produced and catered for by the food business in order to allow safe practice in the delivery,storage,handling,preparation and service of food.( the rule of thumb is that the kitchen should be one third the size of the dining room)

There shall be sufficient space for all food handling activities, refrigeration, equipment, storage, waste management, staff changing, sanitary facilities and cleaning store.

Sanitary Accommodation.

Sanitary accommodation shall be provided for staff and patrons.

Separate designated sanitary accommodation shall be provided for food workers (one toilet for every 15 staff members. (No need for male & female or staff shower)

Sanitary accommodation shall not open directly into areas where food is prepared, treated, processed, stored or directly onto the dining area.

Staff Facilities.

Staff shall be provided with changing facilities which shall not be located in the toilet cubicle or food preparation and storage areas.

Staff facilities should not be accessed through food preparation/handling areas.

Ventilation.

Mechanical ventilation systems where used shall be installed so that the intake of air to the systems is from clean fresh air, i.e airflows are from clean to dirty areas.

Localized mechanical extract ventilation directly to the outer air shall be provided over all cooking and steam emitting appliances.

Where an overhead extraction canopy is provided it shall extend 150mm beyond the cooking equipment on all sides, except where the extraction is part of an integrated design.

Toilet & toilet lobbies shall be separated ventilated to the outside air.

The ventilation provided in food storage & preparation areas shall be sufficient to prevent condensation on walls, celings and overhead structures during normal operation.

Lighting.

Adequate lighting shall be provided and staff to allow safe handling and preparation of food.

Lighting of 540 lux in food processing areas and 220 lux in general areas shall be provided.

In areas where food is exposed all light fittings shall be fitted with shatterproof diffusers.

Floors

Floors shall be smooth, durable, non absorbent, and easy to clean. Examples of acceptable floor finishes include polymers derivatives or epoxy ,polyester, acrylic resins and rubber latex, vinyl tiles, heavy duty vinyl sheeting, on slip tiles or ceramic or quarry tiles.

Floors should be coved to the wall to eliminate corners where dirt could accumulate and to facilitate cleaning.

Walls.

Wall surfaces shall be smooth, durable, non absorbent and easy to clean.

Acceptable finishes include:

Ceramic wall tiles with suitable water proof easily cleanable, flush grouting.

Stainless steel sheeting or panels bedded directly into a sound wall surface.

PVC sheeting-applied directly to surface with suitable adhesive.

Polymers-derivatives of polyester epoxy and acrylic resin finishes.

Wall finishes above work surfaces should be scratch proof an impact resistant to a minimum height of 450mm.

All paints used shall be washable and non toxic.

Ceilings.

Ceilings shall be smooth, durable, non absorbent and easy to clean.

Doors.

Doors shall be smooth, durable.non absorbent and easy to clean and maintain.

The door of the staff toilet and the door of the staff toilet lobby shall be fitted with self closing devices.

Cleaning Store.

A separate designated cleaning STORE should be provided.

A low level sluice sink should be provided in a cleaning store which is serviced with hot & cold water.

Water supply.

An adequate supply of potable water shall be available at all times to all food preparation sinks, ice makers and drinking taps.

Washing Facilities.

A designated sink shall be provided in a food business where foodstuffs are washed. It shall be suitable for the intended purpose for the intended purpose, easy to clean and maintain and provided with an adequate supply of potable water.

The following equipment washing facilities should be provided:

A mechanical dishwasher and a single deep sink with drainer or

A double sink with a drainer.

Separate hand wash facilities shall be available in food preparation areas for food handlers. The wash hand basin shall be accessible, not likely to be obstructed and shall be located close to the working area.

Waste Storage.

External waste storage and handling areas shall be suitably constructed and finished, easy o clean and maintained in a hygienic manner.

Drainage.

Drains openings must not be located in a food room.

All drainage connections must be such as not to give rise to a public health nuisance.

Some local authorities have specific requirements relating to the provision of grease traps. The local authority should be contacted in relation to his issue.

Our company offers start up advice, drawings, and independent advice on catering equipment and novel menu ideas.

All initial consultations areFREEand our partners are positioned throughout the country.

www.marydaly.ie

We are moving our web server to brand new hardware to improve the overall server performance of localmarkets.ie at the following time:

Monday, January 30th 2012 starting at 12 Noon GMT

We are scheduling a 2 hour window, but only anticipate roughly 1 hour of actual downtime (i.e the website will be down).

During this time, localmarkets.ie will display “the store is currently undergoing maintenance” message. We strive to perform all maintenance without an adverse impact to you. However, the possibility always exists that a maintenance event can have unintended consequences that negatively impact your business, up to and including unplanned or extended downtime.

We apologise for any inconvenience this maintenance may cause you but the work has to be done.

Thanks

Mary Daly

Traditionally in food businesses the assessment of the safety of the food was made after the food was eaten by the customer. The assumption was that if there were no customer complaints, if nobody got sick and business was good, then the food was safe.

It is now accepted that food safety must be managed. Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) is a tool for identifying what can go wrong to make food unsafe to eat and then deciding how it can be prevented.

HACCP is a food safety management system that identifies and controls any hazards that could pose a danger to the preparation of safe food. This is an accepted standard by all food operators and became part of Irish Law in 1994.
The management system involves identifying what can go wrong, planning to prevent it and making sure you are continuously doing it. While HACCP is a legal requirement, it will also have many benefits for the effective running of your business resulting in greater efficiency, better quality and reduces the risk of product liability.

Before implementing a HACCP system, butcher shops must put in place a number of basic food hygiene conditions and practices referred to as ‘prerequisites’.
For example:
1. Cleaning and sanitation – e.g., regular cleaning of premises and equipment.
2. Maintenance – e.g., repairs and routine maintenance of premises and equipment.
3. Personnel hygiene.
4. Pest Control – e.g., air intake points and opening external windows in the food preparation areas should be fitted with a fly screen.
5. Plant and equipment – e.g., use of hygienically designed equipment installed in a way that enables easy access for cleaning.
6. Premises and structure – e.g., size of the premises must be adequate for the volume of business.
7. Services – water, waste management, staff facilities etc
8. Storage, distribution and transport – e.g., storage of foods at the correct temperature in a manner that ensures separation of raw and ready-to-eat foods.
9. Zoning – e.g., physical separation of activities to prevent food contamination.

Common Hazards

Once the basic hygiene practices are in place HACCP can help to identify where food safety risks still exist and how they can be best dealt with.

There are four food safety hazards that threaten butcher shops in particular. They are:
Microbiological – harmful bacteria that can cause food poisoning, e.g., ecoli, salmonella, Listeria etc
Chemical contamination – e.g., veterinary drugs, cleaning agents, aftershave, oil/grease etc.
Physical contamination or a foreign body ¬– e.g., hair, plastic, jewellery, nail, piece of metal etc.
Allergens – food which people are allergic to.

Having identified the hazards within your business it is important to set about implementing a programme to control them. When carrying out your programme it is important to remember the following:

Plan what controls need to be established;
Do what you say you are doing;
Check that you are doing it correctly;
Act when things go wrong.

Good control measures include:

• Monitor temperatures at least twice daily.
• Ensure carcass has tag with blue strip and keep for a period of a year
• Keep raw meat and cooked food, vegetables and dry goods apart
• Keep worktops/equipment and areas clean
• Keep food labelled and in date
• Avoid the use of sawdust
• Control waste and ensure pest control is in place.

In order to monitor critical areas it is important for staff to keep user friendly record sheets. These records are a legal requirement and maybe your defence tool, in case of alleged food poisoning.

Food Safety Training:

A very important step in this programme is ensuring that all staff members have received appropriate food hygiene training and understand the importance of the HACCP system. Training is a legal requirement and evidence of training must be retained.

Three levels of training are required:

1. Induction training for new staff (FSAI, level 1);
2. The Primary Course in Food Hygiene, certified by the Environmental Health Officers Association for all regular staff (FSAI level 2);
3. Management of Food Hygiene, certified by the NHP (FSAI level 3) for managers, proprietors, supervisors.
Training can be grant aided this year. Please contact mary@marydaly.ie ,for details.

Traceability:

Since January 2005, all food businesses have a legal responsibility to implement a traceability system and to recall food that is not compliant with food safety requirements. All food businesses must be able to identify their suppliers, and those supplying businesses must in turn be able to identify their customers. Any food that is placed on the market must be adequately labelled to ensure traceability throughout the food chain.

From our good friend Mary Daly: details of Training Courses this Spring. More info at www.marydaly.ie

Farmgate Café, Cork was established in 1994. It is located in the heart of Ireland’s oldest and most historic food market with an industrious exciting view overlooking stalls and fellow traders.