Why food safety training is vital

Every employee and volunteer working with food  is required by law to undergo regular food safety training.

Failure to comply with UK food hygiene rules can have serious consequences for both the organisation and the people who use their services. People who eat contaminated food may become seriously ill and the organisation may be prosecuted, leading to unlimited fines and even closure.

Providing your staff and volunteers with regular food hygiene courses is vital for all.

Why is food safety important?

When food is handled, stored and prepared in ways that do not meet food safety regulations, it can cause pathogens, bacteria and allergens to be transmitted. This can lead to food poisoning, allergic reactions or illnesses such as norovirus, which can all be very dangerous to people in vulnerable groups.

Food safety courses teach staff and volunteers in care settings about the importance of food safety. They will learn how to understand food safety and hygiene hazards, as well as how to manage allergens correctly and store, handle and process food safely.

Providing your staff with regular high-quality food hygiene and safety training can have many benefits for your organisation:

Protecting vulnerable people from food poisoning

Poor storage, handling and preparation procedures can cause food to become contaminated. Anyone can be at risk of food poisoning if they eat unsafe food, but the groups of people most at risk from food poisoning include:

• Adults aged 65+
• Children aged 5 or younger
• People with poor immune systems

Health and social care service users often fall into one of these groups, so it’s particularly important to protect them from the risk of food poisoning.

Improving efficiency in the kitchen

Food hygiene courses teach staff and volunteers how to handle and store food hygienically and avoid food hazards. This leads to improvements in food storage and preparation, fewer errors and more efficient work processes. All of this can help your care setting’s kitchen to operate more efficiently.

Reducing food wastage

Poor food hygiene often leads to food being wasted because it has been incorrectly stored or passed its use-by date, and this increases your costs. Food safety courses will teach your staff how to minimise food waste, which will also help the organisation to save money.

Protecting the reputation of your care setting

Reports in the press about food safety and hygiene problems or outbreaks of food poisoning will harm your care setting’s reputation. Providing food safety training that teaches your employees to maintain high food hygiene standards will help to prevent the likelihood of this happening.

Avoiding prosecution, fines and closure

Organisations that operate with poor food hygiene risk breaching food safety regulations. This can lead to expensive fines or even being shut down if there is a serious risk to health. Food safety training gives you confidence that your employees and volunteers know how to comply with food safety rules and that your kitchen is operating within the regulations.

Food Safety Training Courses

Caredemy’s online food hygiene courses are a convenient and effective way to ensure that all of your staff and volunteers have received the correct food safety training.

Our courses range from the Basic Food Hygiene course to specialist training such as the Food Hygiene and Safety For Residential Care Homes (Level 2) course. We also provide training on Hazard Analysis & Critical Control Point (HACCP) and Improving Your Food Hygiene Rating.

You can book your online food safety course online through the individual course pages. For more details and to discuss your training requirements, please contact our Sales Support Team.