Sanitizing Your Restaurant Post COVID
Restaurants, as well as retail food stores, and those with associated curbside pickup and delivery programs in place, are striving to ensure the safety of their customers and their employees as the country emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic. Along with cleaning and sanitizing, come employee screening and personal protective equipment (PPE) for everyone. Restaurants and retail food businesses are following strict protocols provided by national, state, and local safety guidelines.
Employee Health and Hygiene
Among the top priorities for restaurants and retail food stores is the assurance that employees who are ill, with elevated temperatures or symptoms, say home and get the care they need. In addition, if an employee on the job becomes ill, he or she should be sent home, followed by cleaning and disinfecting of workspace areas, and notification of exposed employees. Pre-screening employees (taking temperatures and assessing symptoms) on arrival, as well as more frequent cleaning and disinfecting of high touch surfaces can help. Employees should also self-monitor, wear face coverings, and practice physical distancing.
In regard to food handling and preparation, employees should be remined to wear gloves, face coverings, and other protective gear, as well as practice effective and frequent hand washing (a minimum of 20 seconds with each occurrence) particularly after bathroom use, prior to eating, and following coughing, sneezing, and the like. When hand washing is not easily accessible, alcohol-based hand sanitizer (minimum 60 percent alcohol) should be used. Prior to preparing (or eating) food, hands should be washed with soap and water (general food safety protocols). For food preparation, gloves should be worn during direct contact with food.
Safe Operations in Restaurants and Retail Food Stores
Established food safety and best practice guidelines should be maintained with the addition of COVID-19 safety protocols. These guidelines include the steps to food safety – cleaning, separation, cooking, and chilling – followed by washing, rinsing, and sanitizing food contact surfaces including cookware, dishware, utensils, surfaces, and beverage service equipment. In addition, high touch surfaces like doorknobs, handles, counters, basket and cart handles, floors and more should be disinfected frequently with an EPA approved effective disinfectant. All sanitizers and disinfectants should be used according to label directions. Employees should be trained in their duties in accordance with current and new procedures. Also, ensure ware-washing equipment is operating at proper temperatures and cycles with required detergents and sanitizers.
For delivery services or curbside pickup – use disposable wrapping and packaging and ensure coolers, warmers, and insulated bags are cleaned and sanitized regularly.
Customers should be reminded to practice physical distancing and wear masks while moving about inside the restaurant and while shopping in retail food settings. Have hand sanitizers readily available and easily accessible for customers and employees.
Signature Sanitize Your Restaurant or Retail Food Store
Signature Maids’ Signature Sanitize custom sanitization and disinfection service can help you keep your restaurant or retail food store safe, clean, sanitized, and disinfected. For a fully disinfected restaurant or food store, Signature Sanitize uses state of the art electrostatic atomizers to apply Vital Oxide, an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved disinfecting solution, in a completely touchless process. Vital Oxide has been proven to destroy 99.999 percent of viruses and bacteria including COVID-19, Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), Legionella, Norovirus, Pneumophila, Swine Flu (H1N1), as well as allergens, mold, mildew, and other contaminants.
Highly trained Signature Maids technicians ensure your entire space is disinfected and sanitized during the process, including high touch areas and difficult to reach spaces, thus ensuring the safety of your customers and your employees. Call today for more information on the benefits of Signature Sanitize Disinfection and Sanitization Service by Signature Maids.
