Do you want to make food safety protection feel like a shared responsibility on your team? It may help to designate a food safety champion during every shift. These champions are team members trained to monitor critical practices – handwashing, temperature checks, cross-contamination prevention – and lead by example. By moving the responsibility around, you can embed safety into your culture. Start by rotating the role daily or weekly so every team member gains ownership. Give champions a simple checklist and brief huddle time to reinforce key points. You can have staff wear a color-coded badge when serving as champions, making them easy points of contact. From there, you can recognize good performance – for complete logs or quick corrective action, for example – with small incentives like gift cards or shout-outs during team meetings. When staff see safety as their responsibility and not just management’s, they’re more likely to hold each other accountable.

Food safety is a moving target. In addition to the growing list of guest dietary requirements foodservice businesses monitor, even changes in staff and shifts can leave room for an oversight that creates a problem. The stakes are especially high in senior living facilities, where weakened immune systems and health challenges leave people more vulnerable.
Fortunately, a wide array of technology is being used to monitor safety in foodservice businesses – wireless sensors for remote monitoring, Bluetooth thermometers, and smart dishwashing machines that automatically log sanitation temperatures and chemical levels are just a few examples. These tools are useful in removing error-prone manual processes and human biases, but they aren’t immune to failure, or a replacement for human knowledge. Yet it’s easy for technology to become a crutch during busy or understaffed shifts.
Taking a few steps can help you strike the right balance between tech-driven accuracy and human oversight. Starting small – say, by automating a single critical control point like cold storage monitoring before expanding to other areas – can help your team adapt to a new tool and pick up on potential issues with it. Of course, ongoing staff training on tech additions is needed to maximize their benefits and maintain compliance. Finally, scheduling periodic reviews of digital records can ensure you’re verifying the accuracy of the tools you implement so you can address any discrepancies promptly.

An external food safety audit becomes much less of a worry when a facility knows what’s coming – and has prepared for it internally. Internal food safety self-audits are a proactive, essential tool for maintaining high standards in any foodservice operation – especially in environments like senior living facilities, where residents are more vulnerable to foodborne illnesses. According to the FDA Food Code, routine self-inspections can help catch violations early, reducing the risk of costly health department citations and, more importantly, resident illness.
The more interactive and collaborative the process, the more effective it becomes. At Whole Foods Market, for example, they try to embed food safety into team member training, internal and external auditing programs, store design, equipment purchasing, technology development, packaging, and data collection, according to Jeff Edelen, vice president of retail food safety at the company. The culture emphasizes shared successes and shared setbacks, so team members are encouraged to speak up when they see a food safety problem. Looking at every aspect of the operation from a food safety angle can help deepen an organization’s food safety culture.

While times have changed since the pandemic, safety is still a critical pillar supporting the experience you offer guests (and their perceptions of it). Your commitment to food safety sends a clear message about the hospitality you provide. When you find new ways to share your food safety practices openly with guests, you can build trust, boost loyalty and even improve your competitive edge.
Consumers increasingly want to know how their food is sourced, prepared and protected. There are all kinds of ways to offer real-time assurance –QR codes on packaging or signage can link to allergen guides, cleanliness standards, or kitchen certifications. Even simple steps like visible handwashing stations, staff using gloves and sanitizers, or checklists posted near prep areas can reassure guests that you take safety seriously.
Brands like MOD Pizza encourage guests to ask about prep procedures and cleanliness. They also post videos that show how their kitchens maintain sanitation during busy shifts. Panera launched a "No No List" of ingredients it refuses to use and has pushed public commitments on clean eating and sourcing. Its staff are trained to address food safety and allergen concerns directly with guests.
By proactively sharing your safety standards (and by extension, your ingredient sourcing standards), you signal care, professionalism, and respect. Looking at your practices, are there ways you can use transparency as not simply a regulatory necessity, but also a marketing advantage?

Approximately 32 million Americans have food allergies, according to the organization Food Allergy and Research Education (FARE). That amounts to about one in 10 adults, or two children in every classroom. As a result of the risks, real-time allergen tracking has become indispensable for foodservice operators. Even one oversight can lead to severe health consequences, legal challenges, and damage to a brand's reputation.
Fortunately, real-time allergen tracking tools are helping businesses at every level of the supply chain monitor allergens and manage their risks. Within foodservice, digital menu management systems, kitchen display systems with allergen alerts, and centralized training platforms are making it possible for businesses to update ingredient information in the moment and maintain consistent staff education. Here are some examples of how a range of food industry brands are managing the risk of allergens:
• Cracker Barrel, Wayback Burgers and TGI Fridays are among the brands using EveryBite’s SmartMenu technology across their locations. It lets diners filter menu items by allergen categories, including the top nine allergens. Every time a guest uses the digital platform, their SmartMenu allergen choices are collected as insights for the restaurant.
• Volanté Systems offers a POS platform tailored for foodservice operations. It integrates allergen alerts and dietary filters to assist in managing allergies, particularly in healthcare and senior living environments.
• Menutech automatically detects allergens using AI, allowing for real-time menu updates and compliance with food safety regulations.
• FoodNotify is a cloud-based tool that helps restaurants manage recipes with automatic allergen, nutrient, and additive labeling, ensuring compliance and real-time updates across menus.
• AllerGenius is an allergen detection technology that uses advanced molecular techniques to identify allergenic proteins with high sensitivity. It can screen raw ingredients for the presence of allergens before they are incorporated into food products. It’s helping food producers and foodservice businesses alike to understand what’s going into their food.
Across your operation – and up and down your supply chain – how is technology currently helping you mitigate allergy risks? Effectively containing these risks can help you foster guest confidence: Food allergy sufferers are a loyal group when they find brands who protect them from exposure.

In foodservice, beverages are high-volume menu items that can generate a number of contamination risks – especially as the weather heats up. Here are a few that may need some extra attention in the months ahead: The equipment involved in preparing cold beverages – like your blenders, shakers, scoops, and beverage dispensers – can become contaminated when not stored and/or cleaned properly. Ice contamination is another silent risk – moldy or slimy machines or improper scooping methods can taint drinks. Poor storage practices, like leaving milk or fruit garnishes unrefrigerated – can lead to spoilage and foodborne illness. Lastly, garnishes and toppings, if handled hastily or stored uncovered, can carry bacteria from hands or surfaces straight into a customer’s drink. Minimizing these risks requires staff training, strict cleaning protocols, and proper ingredient handling. It may also help to schedule professional servicing/cleaning of ice machines and beverage dispensers ahead of the summer season, when guests will be looking to refresh with cool drinks.

Planning to serve food outdoors this season? Warmer weather boosts the risk of foodborne illnesses like Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria, and Campylobacter, which thrive in heat and humidity. These bacteria are often linked to undercooked meats, improperly stored cold foods, and contaminated produce – common foodservice challenges during warm-weather events. To prevent outbreaks, keep cold foods below 40°F, cook meats to safe internal temperatures, and take precautions to avoid cross-contamination. Rinse all produce, even if pre-washed, and train staff on how to ensure food hygiene when serving and holding food in warm temperatures.
In senior care settings, where residents are more vulnerable, food safety oversights can lead to particularly serious outcomes. Residents often have chronic health conditions, reduced stomach acidity, or take medications that suppress immunity. Even simple practices like offering more hydrating foods (like fruit or popsicles) and minimizing buffet-style service in the heat can reduce risk.

For people who are new to foodservice work, the terms cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting can sound almost interchangeable. But knowing the difference between them – and which to do where and when – plays a key role in preventing contamination and foodborne illness. It can also ensure your business complies with health codes during its next inspection. Is your team clear about the distinctions?
Cleaning is the first step. Using soap or detergent and water, it removes visible dirt, grease and food particles from floors, walls, equipment exteriors and non-food contact surfaces. This process makes surfaces look tidy but does not eliminate bacteria or viruses.
Sanitizing follows cleaning for food-contact surfaces like prep tables, cutting boards and utensils. Using food-safe chemical sanitizers or heat, this process reduces bacteria to safe levels, preventing cross-contamination. Items should always be cleaned before sanitizing.
Disinfecting is needed for high-touch, non-food areas such as restrooms, garbage bins, doorknobs and employee break rooms. Disinfectants kill most bacteria and viruses but are typically too strong for food-contact surfaces and shouldn’t be used on them.
To maintain food safety, clean first, then sanitize or disinfect where needed using clearly labeled solutions.

​Foodborne illness can be especially harmful to older adults. According to Foodsafety.gov, adults aged 65 and older are more likely to be hospitalized or to die from foodborne illness. In fact, more than half of Listeria infections occur in this age group, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The body’s immune response to disease becomes weaker with age, which makes it especially important to take good care when cleaning certain areas of the kitchen if you’re serving people in this demographic. Here are a few key hotspots that can be breeding ground for bacteria and mold if not managed carefully: Equipment that traps moisture – including ice machines, beverage dispensers, and refrigerator and freezer gaskets – can harbor bacteria and mold. Other areas where water and food particles are apt to collect, like floor drains and sinks, are culprits too. Regular scrubbing and maintenance to prevent clogs can help ensure these areas don’t trap food or liquid that can harbor pathogens. Cutting boards and prep surfaces can collect bacteria, particularly in cracks or cuts. In addition to cleaning and sanitizing them after use, these items should be replaced when damaged. Finally, ventilation hoods and grease traps can encourage mold growth through the accumulation of grease and moisture. These areas need frequent deep cleaning to maintain a safe kitchen environment.

Ghost kitchens represent a small but growing segment of the foodservice industry. While Euromonitor research indicates there are currently about 1,500 ghost kitchens in the U.S., by 2030 these facilities are forecast to hold a 50 percent share of the drive-thru and takeout foodservice markets worldwide, according to Statista. Ghost kitchens have promise because of their ability to accommodate consumer demand for food variety, customized dishes and convenience in ways that preserve margins.
But the food safety challenges that ghost kitchens face can be steeper than those of their conventional counterparts. Sharing a kitchen can make cross-contamination harder to prevent and food safety consistency more difficult. Understaffing and high staff turnover can compound the problem – and the nonstandard working hours of the businesses operating these kitchens can make inspections inconsistent. Ghost kitchens rely on delivery drivers, which makes it challenging for operators to monitor quality and safety once food leaves the premises. They also rely on online platforms for communicating about allergens and ingredients, so any delays in updating those systems can put consumers at risk.
What’s the best way to manage these hazards? Recently, Food Safety Magazine published results from an online survey, focus groups and interviews with environmental health offers and ghost kitchen operators. Respondents said formal food safety training for staff and delivery drivers would help, as well as more frequent inspections to encourage better adherence to food safety standards. Finding ways to ensure consistent practices was also a theme, with respondents suggesting comprehensive and specific guidelines for evaluating hygiene practices, allergen control and structural standards for all of the businesses sharing a kitchen. If you operate a kitchen alongside other businesses, what practices do you use to ensure food safety consistency?