The catering industry is one of the most demanding environments in existence when it comes to consistent hygiene. With our Surface Sanitising Wipes proving so popular with restaurants, cafés, bars and site-based catering facilities around the UK, we’ve put together some tips on how to maintain top hygiene levels throughout your premises.

Avoiding cross-contamination

The spread of bacteria is the most serious risk to the smooth and safe running of a catering environment, with cross-contamination being the main source of germs spreading from surface to surface. To avoid this from happening, you should wash your hands at these key points during the working day:

• Before you begin work
• Prior to handling food and ingredients
• After handling raw food, including its packaging
• After using the toilet
• After eating and drinking
• After a break, no matter how short
• After handling cash
• After using and emptying bins
• After blowing your nose or coughing
• After cleaning your surroundings

For many caterers the above process will be second nature, but for those who are new to their role or have come from a similar business that didn’t make hygiene a priority, it might come as a surprise how rigorous you need to be. However, by remembering to wash your hands before starting a new task or touching something potentially unhygienic, you’ll ensure that bacteria is taken out of the equation.

Also, each time you wash your hands, you should dry them using disposable paper towels if possible. This is the most effective method of hand drying, as jet hand dryers can play a part in the transmitting of some viruses.

Maintain personal hygiene

Working in a kitchen can be very hard work, so personal hygiene has to be an even higher priority than in most other working environments. By changing into clean work clothes before starting your day, keeping your fingernails short so that they don’t collect dirt and bacteria, and refraining from wearing jewellery, you’ll be helping to reduce the spread of germs around your surroundings.

It’s also important to not wear perfume or aftershave, which can taint the flavour of the food, plus nail varnish should be left for outside of work as it can chip off and become mixed in with the food that you’re preparing.

Protective clothing

Any catering company that’s worth its salt will provide all of its kitchen staff with aprons, hairnets and kitchen shoes that have been sanitised. If your workplace is missing any of these items it should be brought to the attention of the manager, as they all contribute to safe and hygienic working practices.

Illness needs to be reported

If you’re feeling ill in any way, even if it’s only slight nausea, dizziness or a cough, you need to tell your line manager. These symptoms often denote sickness, which will mean that you’ll be bringing germs into the kitchen no matter how careful you are.

Meanwhile, any small wounds or skin conditions such as cuts, scrapes, eczema, boils and so on need to be properly covered in order to remove any risk of contaminating foodstuffs and utensils.

Use Dirteeze Surface Sanitising Wipes liberally

Designed for the thorough cleaning of food preparation areas, work surfaces, stainless steel utensils and equipment, our Surface Sanitising Wipes kill 99.999% of harmful substances thanks to their outstanding microbial performance against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, yeast and viruses.

Quat-free, biguanide-free, alcohol-free and taint-free, these wipes are ideally suited to all types of businesses that serve food, from small coffee shops and independent bars, to large canteens in schools, universities, hospitals, offices and factories.

When you choose Dirteeze, you’re investing in wipes with a difference! Get in touch to find your nearest stockist.