In 2014, a woman from Utah was hospitalized and almost died after a restaurant employee accidentally added cleaning chemicals to iced tea. The employee thought it was sugar they were adding to the sweet tea. The woman made a miraculous recovery and, luckily, is fine today.
Situations like this happen more often than you’d think and can be avoided with proper labeling. The reasons for investing in a labeling system are as diverse as the food you’re prepping and the customers you’re serving.
Here are the top reasons to invest in food labeling:
Assure the health inspector your operation is safe. Show the health inspector your operation is up to date on food safety labeling compliance with an organized color coded labeling system.
Prevent cross-contamination. Stacking containers is now safe with adhesives that either dissolve in water or can be cleanly removed even after washing.
Avoid serving out of date food. Identify food quickly and easily with color coded labels. With ample room to write, it’s easy to determine in what order food needs to be used.
Manage inventory. “Use by” and “Use First” labels help kitchens maintain better inventory management for multiple batches, ensuring a first in, first out system.
A variety of labels and dispensing options offered. With four adhesives, 13 label styles and six dispensing options, you can find what you need for your kitchen.
Conveniently available. Contact your local foodservice distributor to find out how to order your food labeling system.
Minimize the potential for lawsuits. When used properly, food safety labeling systems create an organized and safe solution for managing food freshness.
Minimum investment. Every kitchen’s needs are different. Whether you need one roll or 1000, you can find the solution and price to meet your needs.
Reduce food waste. Quickly and easily monitor expiration dates to avoid wasting food and money.
Any food that’s not in its original packaging must be labeled. Think of all the foods that could be easily mistaken for something else: salt added to a recipe that asks for sugar or baking powder instead of flour. Spending money on an efficient and simple labeling system is the perfect solution to kitchen chaos. You’ll end up saving money in the long run and you won’t waste ingredients or time either. In addition, the risk to violating food safety protocols is greatly diminished with a systematic, reliable labeling system.
A good labeling system includes the date, product names, food types, use-by dates, and food storage information. Hand-writing that information will take you time and legibility of handwriting can sometimes cause problems.. The Date Code Genie is a time-saving alternative to writing out the labels by hand and you can find more information about that by clicking here.
Cold foods must be sold or served within six hours. After six hours any leftover cold food product must be discarded. Hot foods must be sold or served within four hours. After four hours the hot food product must be discarded.
Food safety is critical to your business and something that requires constant monitoring. From the cooler to the prep area, it’s important to know which products to use first to reduce your risk of spoilage. Food rotation systems help you:
- Improve inventory management
- Monitor the expiration dates of your food
- Avoid cross-contamination
- Ensure customer safety
- Assure health inspectors the kitchen is is compliant
- Reduce waste
- Save time and money