{"id":2314,"date":"2021-08-12T08:00:45","date_gmt":"2021-08-12T13:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/?p=2314"},"modified":"2021-08-09T22:33:58","modified_gmt":"2021-08-10T03:33:58","slug":"food-handling-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/food-handling-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Safe Food Handling Tips Every Food Truck Biz Should Follow"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/used-mobile-food-trucks\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food trucks<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> are popular go-to spots when looking for some good eats.\u00a0 Not only are they accessible, they also offer unique and delicious kinds of meals that you don\u2019t ordinarily get in a restaurant.\u00a0 Food trucks are a way for chefs and home cooks to showcase their cooking skills and share their talent in whipping up something satisfying to our palates.\u00a0 And since they can be found anywhere, food trucks are also a great source of quick eats that keep you from going hungry especially when you are on the go.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Just like restaurants, food trucks are also committed to handling food with care to prevent food poisoning and other kinds of trouble.\u00a0 Some food trucks have been closed due to food safety concerns.\u00a0 So as a food truck owner, you are fully responsible in making sure that you follow proper practices in food safe handling to ensure that the meals you serve are always fresh.\u00a0 We have come up with a few tips that we believe could help.<\/span><\/p>\n<div style=\"border: 3px solid; padding: 10px; width: 100%; border-radius: 25px; border-color: #F4A70F; color: #007bff;\">\n<strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #007bff;\">What&#8217;s Inside<\/p>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#foodhandling\"> Food Handling<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#foodstorage\"> Food Storage<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#foodexpiry\"> Food Expiry and Storage Environment<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#foodsafety\"> How to Implement Food Safety Practices<\/a><\/li>\n<ul>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#foodsafety1\"> Train your staff properly<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#foodsafety2\"> Inspect your area<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#foodsafety3\"> Know your local health guidelines<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"#foodsafety4\"> Check your suppliers<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><b><\/b><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"foodhandling\"><strong>Tip #1: Food Handling<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Always remember that bacteria cannot move on their own.\u00a0 They are being transported from one place to another via food handling and by pests, such as flies, roaches, rodents, and even your own pets.\u00a0 So aside from keeping your workstation tidy, here are some things that you should always practice:<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water, most especially before handling food, after using the toilet, and in between handling raw and cooked food.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Use kitchen utensils such as tongs, forks, spoons, spatulas, and gloves and avoid touching food with bare hands.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Always wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly, especially when served raw.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Clean and sanitize your work stations, utensils, and kitchenware at all times.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Separate cutting boards, knives and plates for each type of food, like raw meat, fish, vegetables, and cooked food.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Always use safe, treated water when cooking, preparing or cleaning.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As much as possible use paper towels in handling food, as dishcloths and towels can carry bacteria.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Keep your pets and pests off your food truck.\u00a0 Call an exterminator if you notice pests starting to invade your truck.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b><\/b><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"foodstorage\"><strong>Tip#2:\u00a0Food Storage<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><b><\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Separate various types of food in your fridge, such as raw meat, dairy, ready-to-eat food and cooked food, and make sure to wrap them before putting them atop each other to avoid contamination.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Never overstock your fridge.\u00a0 Always stock up your food in a way that cold air can circulate properly. Don\u2019t forget to defrost often.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Check the temperature of your fridge on a regular basis to ensure that your food is always kept in the right condition.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Keep your food covered at all times to protect it from dirt, dust, insects, sneezes and spit, and others.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do not recycle or reuse plastic or aluminium wrap already used for other food items especially raw food.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b><\/b><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"foodexpiry\"><strong>Tip#3: Food Expiry\u00a0and Storage Environment<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are certain types of food that get spoiled easily because of growth of molds and bacteria, such as dairy and raw meat. \u00a0 Bacteria can grow in dangerous levels that when eaten will become detrimental to health.\u00a0 So, to keep high-risk foods out of danger, you must:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Always keep high-risk foods in their proper temperatures.\u00a0 Example: Freezing point for raw meats and seafood, while 5\u00b0c for dairy products, sandwiches, and salads.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Defrost frozen food in the fridge or microwave set at \u201cdefrost\u201d.\u00a0 This is safer compared to leaving raw food on the countertop and risk bacterial growth.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">High-risk food should be cooked and served immediately.\u00a0 If it is left out for more than 4 hours, dispose of it.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thoroughly cook food, especially meats and poultry.\u00a0 Make sure their meat and juices are clear and not pink.\u00a0 This can not only breed bacteria but also other diseases like salmonella and e-coli.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food, whether cooked or uncooked should be refrigerated immediately. Except for steaming hot meals, such as casseroles or soups, you may allow it to cool first before placing it inside the fridge.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When reheating food, make sure it is steaming or boiling hot before serving it.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Avoid storing food even in the fridge for more than 3 days.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"uv-lst\" data-category=\"20\" data-count=\"6\" data-type=\"new\"> <\/div>\n<h2 id=\"foodsafety\"><strong>How to Implement Food Safety Practices<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On top of all these, you should also follow a regular checklist on everyone working in the food truck.\u00a0 Although food storage and tidiness is a priority, it is also important to make sure that the people working in it are well-equipped.<\/span><br \/>\n<b><\/b><\/p>\n<h3 id=\"foodsafety1\">1. Train your staff properly<\/h3>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To ensure that all your protocols are being followed, all food truck staff must have food safety knowledge and training.\u00a0 When health inspectors come to ask questions, they must be knowledgeable enough to answer, otherwise you can be fined.\u00a0 This training is also very useful in the course of your business operations.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><br \/>\n<b><\/b><\/p>\n<h3 id=\"foodsafety2\">2. Inspect your area<\/h3>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At least once a month, try to go over all areas of your food truck so you can identify potential risk areas.\u00a0 By doing this, you will be able to immediately address food safety concerns.\u00a0 Some food businesses even do this at least once a week.<\/span><br \/>\n<b><\/b><\/p>\n<h3 id=\"foodsafety3\">3. Know your local health guidelines<\/h3>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is important to know your local health codes to avoid fines or foodborne illness outbreaks.\u00a0 Different cities may have different health codes, so check first with the locality where you plan to operate your business.<\/span><br \/>\n<b><\/b><\/p>\n<h3 id=\"foodsafety4\">4. Check your suppliers<\/h3>\n<p><b><\/b><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food can also be contaminated anywhere in the supply chain, so it is important to know the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/best-food-suppliers-mobile-kitchen\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sources of your food<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, if they have licenses or certificates, how long the food is being transported to your end, and how it is being stored.\u00a0 Get supplies from credible suppliers who offer quality goods and services for your peace of mind.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We hope that with these tips, you will be able to breeze through your food truck business with ease.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Food trucks are popular go-to spots when looking for some good eats.\u00a0 Not only are they accessible, they also offer unique and delicious kinds of meals that you don\u2019t ordinarily get in a restaurant.\u00a0 Food trucks are a way for chefs and home cooks to showcase their cooking skills and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":191,"featured_media":2319,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[701,713,27,712,20,317],"class_list":["post-2314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-trucks","tag-bakery-food-truck-business","tag-food-handling","tag-food-truck","tag-food-truck-biz","tag-food-truck-business","tag-food-truck-business-tips"],"modified_by":"Titus Asher","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/191"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2314"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2314\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2339,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2314\/revisions\/2339"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usedvending.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}