An EXCLUSIVE for Convenience Store News | Published January 2016
Individuals with food allergies must be properly accommodated across all spectrums of the food service industry. Approximately 230,000 hospitalizations and 200 deaths occur annually because food-allergic individuals accidentally ingested or inhaled their allergens. Make one tiny mistake with “just a trace” of an allergen, and someone could die, literally.
Recently, I was teaching food safety classes for a convenience
store chain after they had rolled out barista-style coffee. At one point during
class, we were discussing the new products and I discovered they offered a
beverage containing soy milk. Later in the day, as we talked about food
allergies, I used the soy milk as an example. I remember saying, “It’s great
that you have signs with warnings that state: Soy products are served here;
therefore, there could be potential contamination.” Everyone in the class
looked at me like I was speaking a language they’d never heard. I then said,
“You do have a warning statement, don’t you?” Slowly, everyone began to shake
their heads no.
Having no signage about food allergens and possible
contamination was the first of a series of problems, showing me that these
employees were not properly trained to accommodate food-allergic
customers. We discussed cleaning
procedures for the mixers that were used for multiple beverages, including
products with common allergens like peanut butter, dairy and soy, and the
employees told me they were just being “spun” in water with sanitizer, not
thoroughly cleaned with hot water and soap before being sanitized. Additionally, there was not an assigned mixer
for allergen-free products only. This brand had big problems.
During the next break, I called the corporate office to
inform them of these oversights. A few hours later, after class, I stopped into
another one of their units on the way home. In the short time since I’d
reported the problem to corporate, the stores had already posted temporary
allergen warning signs. I also noticed
that they had labeled the mixers for allergen and allergen-free products. This
showed – without a doubt – how valuable an external set of eyes and ears can
be. I was delighted to see that the
convenience store chain was able to quickly fix their errors and start
improving their food allergy protocols. The leadership team was ecstatic that these issues were caught (and
resolved) prior to a tragedy.
I’ve had numerous conversations with individuals who (erroneously)
believe that cooking oil gets hot enough to “kill the protein” that causes an
allergic reaction. This is simply not
true. Speaking of cooking oil, don’t use
the same fryer or oil for French fries that you use for breaded products, fish
or foods containing nuts, as doing so will cause cross-contact for people with
gluten, fish or nut allergies. Allergen-free foods must be cooked in clean oil, using separate (clean)
prep stations and equipment (cutting boards, knives, pans, etc.)
All food
service establishments – including convenience stores – must have procedures in
place to ensure safe experiences for food-allergic customers, and must train
all employees to always follow these procedures. Here are a few tips to make your stores
allergy-friendly:
- Create a separate workspace in
your prep areas to prepare allergen-free products. Make certain you clean
and sanitize all work surfaces
and equipment.
- Utilize color coded allergy
tools in your kitchens to reduce the risk of cross-contact. Purple is the universal
color for allergen-free kitchen utensils. Keep these tools clean and
covered.
- Identify allergen-free products
with colored stickers (purple is the color of choice) so they can be
easily identified.
- Make certain all dishware is
properly washed, rinsed, and sanitized prior to reuse.
- Ensure that all employees know
the ingredients in every component of every food they serve, including
sauces, marinades, sandwich breads, etc. Train them to read and understand ingredient labels.
- Ensure that your employees know
the “aliases” for common allergens – e.g., casein and whey are dairy,
semolina is grain, etc.
- Communicate with your team, and train them on food allergy protocols. There are numerous webinars, videos, and live classes that can assist you with this endeavor.
It’s critical
that everyone on your staff understands the difference between cross-contact
and cross-contamination:
- Cross-contact occurs when an
allergen is inadvertently transferred from a food containing an allergen
to a food that does not contain the allergen – such as chopping peanuts on
a board and then chopping grilled chicken on that same board. The grilled chicken has come into
contact with the peanuts, which could trigger an allergic reaction in a
guest with peanut allergies. Cooking does not reduce or eliminate the risk
of cross-contact.
- Cross-contamination is a common factor in the cause of foodborne illness. If you place raw chicken on a board, and then chop vegetables on that same board, you risk cross-contamination, spreading bacteria from the raw poultry onto the vegetables. Proper cooking of the contaminated food in most cases will reduce or eliminate the chances of a foodborne illness.
The main
difference between cross-contact and cross-contamination is that anyone can become ill from
cross-contamination if they eat foods that have touched raw meats or
poultry. Cross-contact is dangerous only
for food-allergic guests, who may inadvertently ingest their allergens if
proper care wasn’t taken during food prep.
Approximately
15 million Americans have food allergies, including 1 in 13 children. Food
allergies among children increased approximately 50% between 1997 and 2011 and
no one understands why. Recognized that 25% of people’s first allergic
reactions happen outside the home. This issue isn’t going to go away any time
soon. Train your staff to recognize the
signs of an allergic reaction, and have plan in place in case one occurs at
your store. A “small” mistake - such as
standing someone up in the midst of an anaphylactic reaction - could be
fatal.
Everyone on
your team should know how to handle an order for someone with food allergies.
Consumers are seeking out establishments where they can eat worry free. These establishments will earn brand loyalty
and, therefore, increase profitability. Wouldn’t it be nice to be recognized as
the C-store that consumers with food allergies can eat with confidence?
