3 JOB DESCRIPTIONS DETERMINE IF YOUR WORKERS ARE FOOD HANDLERS

Running a food business need manpower. A food kiosk needs at least a worker, a restaurant might need 3 - 5 workers, bigger food business needs more, up to 15 -20, food factories need even more.  We often call these workers as worker, staff, crew etc. But do you know that they also have another designation called Food Handler? 

Citing Food Hygiene Regulations 2009, all food handlers should attend 3-hours Food Handlers Training Course organized by certified Food Handlers Training School to obtain Food Handling course certificate.  Food handler who failed to do so could result penalty not more than RM10,000 and not more than 2 years imprisonment.  So, if you are running a food business, do examine who are food handlers in your organization and if they had obtained a Food Handlers Training Course Certificate.

A very straight forward definition of food handler is, a person who is preparing food in a premise. It refers to the cook, kitchen helper, food factory operators, any person who is preparing food and processing food. 

Equipment has food contact surfaces

Besides, a person who is contacting food and food contact surfaces in a premise is a food handler.  Plates, bowl, glasses, chopping board, fork, spoon, chopstick, knife, basket, basins and any other equipment that are used for handling food in a kitchen has surfaces that will be contacted with food. This surface is called food contact surface. A person like dish washers would touch food contact surfaces while she is washing plate. And so, a dish washer is also called a food handler. Besides dish washer, is there any other workers who would contact food contact surfaces?

Finally, a person who is handling packaged or unpackaged food or equipment in a premise is called a food handler. For this definition, you can always think about to bakery staff’s work activity. They are handling packaged or unpackaged bread or cakes on display rack.

By now you had known who would you called Food Handlers. So, a staff in your organization who is working in office ONLY is not grouped as Food Handler.  A cashier, by definition is not a Food Handler, but if business owner sometimes arranging her to “help serving food”, she should be categorized as a Food Handler.

As a kind reminder, do arrange your food handlers to attend Food Handlers Training Course and having anti-typhoid vaccination to avoid penalty.  When your food handlers are attending the course, they would receive proper training on food handling so that they would know how to take care of your food business. 

 

                 

Jacky Chung
Trainer and Consultant
JACKYZ SOLUTION