Food Safety Tips for Hospitality Management

3. Enforce a workplace illness policy, especially for food handlers. In recent years, many foodborne illness outbreaks linked to hotels have been identified as starting with a food handler who worked while ill. Norovirus, which is highly contagious, can be spread easily when food workers who are sick handle food and beverages. A food handler with Hepatitis A can also put people at risk; and anyone exposed to Hepatitis A may require a course of vaccination. These foodborne illness incidents put guests at risk, open properties up to liability, and could expose your brand to negative publicity.

Be sure that the staff understands the risk that an ill food handler poses to the operation. It can be very impactful to talk to them about the human costs of the decision to work while ill. Beyond sickening customers, they could also sicken co-workers, causing them to be out of work, and leaving your team short-staffed. A foodborne illness incident could put the hotel’s food operations or entire property in danger of being closed by the health department or regulatory agency, which could result in many people being out of work for a period of time—lasting days or even weeks. In that same vein, a foodborne illness incident could create the opportunity for lawsuits, which, if severe enough, could put the hotel out of business.

This is an especially important discussion to have with workers who do not have the opportunity to earn paid sick leave. Often, these workers come to work ill because they can’t afford to take the time off, not realizing that their sickness could be putting so much more in jeopardy.

4. Utilize third-party auditors as an ally for your business. Partnering with a third-party auditing company can help ensure that brand and regulatory food safety practices are being adhered to in every location. Third-party assessments provide an objective viewpoint to spot any potential risks early on and recommend a corrective action plan. The best third-party companies also have their fingers on the pulse of the overall hospitality industry and can provide constructive insights into how your business is performing in food safety when compared with other hospitality industry benchmarks.

It’s no secret that many health departments are stretched thin. You might say, “I get inspected by the health department periodically, isn’t that sufficient?” These inspections may not actually be frequent enough to really identify problems and make organizational change. Three or four third-party assessments a year can help track progress and drive long-term behavior change for your entire team.

Third-party assessments can also complement the training demand that many hospitality operations find themselves under. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2016, turnover in the hospitality sector is nearly 73 percent—highlighting how most operations are hiring new staff members regularly. Thorough third-party auditors can help coach team members new and old on company’s standards and critical food safety practices, serving to reinforce training already conducted.

Some third-party assessment companies can even extend their assessments to evaluate operational elements of the property as well—the pool, spa, lobby, parking lot, meeting rooms, etc.—to judge items such as cleanliness, safety, staff interactions, and more.

With the hotel guest experience continually evolving, the number of areas in which hotels are exposed to food safety risks will only increase. Training and attention to food safety risks can no longer be isolated to the kitchen. Anywhere, any person, and any equipment that is along the path food travels in your operation allows for potential incursion of foodborne pathogens or an opportunity for food to become compromised. To safeguard your business, consider implementing a robust food safety program that includes a gap analysis, staff training, a well-developed and enforced illness policy, and third-party assessments. By taking these proactive steps, your hotel is setup for success to ensure guests have a stay that is memorable for all the right reasons.