Fearful opponent hygiene control

This is what you should know about the visit of the health department.

Many restaurateurs dread food hygiene inspections, even if they are actually very meticulous about staff hygiene and kitchen cleaning. The visit of the inspector nevertheless creates an uneasy feeling: Is everything really in order? Do all employees follow the rules for kitchen cleaning? Are all hygiene training and self-checks properly documented? To take away your fear of a visit from the health department, we provide you with all you need to know about food hygiene inspections in our guide.

Who is inspected?

In principle, all establishments that work with food or objects of daily use must expect hygiene inspections. These inspection visits are unannounced, and on average about half of all food service establishments are scrutinized each year. Those who process perishable foods such as raw meat, eggs and dairy products are generally considered to be at higher risk and are inspected more frequently. However, complaints from guests or employees can also be the reason for an inspection. If there have already been conspicuous cases in the past, the health department is happy to visit more frequently and at shorter intervals. Every year, violations of hygiene regulations are found in just under a quarter of all businesses inspected.

What is inspected?

The inspector checks whether the prescribed measures for maintaining food safety are being observed in your company. Is there a HACCP concept? How well does this work? Are all specified limit values adhered to? Is the kitchen cleaned regularly according to the appropriate specifications and are employees properly trained? Are there gaps in the documentation of your hygiene measures? In addition, the inspector takes random samples and has them examined in the laboratory. Depending on how high the food inspection assesses the risk in your business, the number of random samples taken will be as follows.