National Restaurant Association and ServSafe Highlight Importance of Planning and Training to Mitigate Foodborne Illness Possibilities

Washington, D.C. – Each day in more than 1 million restaurants across the U.S., employees orchestrate a symphony of experiences, bringing together food and service to deliver delicious dining to guests. Every person working in a restaurant has a responsibility to not only create that great experience, but also to adhere to the culture of food safety that delivers a safe dining experience.

Restaurants that follow consistent food safety practices, like those outlined in ServSafe^® training, with managers who are food safety certified, are less likely to experience a foodborne illness incident. However, within the complexity of the farm-to-table food supply chain, food safety breaches can occur.

The National Restaurant Association and ServSafe – the premiere food safety training curriculum – have created a one-two punch of preparation and training to support restaurant owners’ efforts to mitigate a foodborne illness crisis through continuous oversight and active management.

The Always Ready: Foodborne Illness Outbreak preparedness guide covers the most critical business practices to prevent a foodborne illness but also how to respond should an incident occur. To complement this business planning, content planned for National Food Safety Month (NFSM) in September will take a deep dive into the causes of foodborne illnesses and how to prevent outbreaks through training, certification and good management.

“The Association is proud to release our latest Always Ready Guide in conjunction with the critical National Food Safety Month to help restaurant operators stay vigilant on food safety in their restaurants,” said Michelle Korsmo, President & CEO of the National Restaurant Association. “According to the CDC, restaurants with kitchen managers certified in food safety are less likely to have foodborne illness outbreaks. To be always ready, restaurant owners should back up that training and certification with a restaurant-specific plan for how to respond to a foodborne illness should one occur.”

The Always Ready: Foodborne Illness Outbreak Guide

The guide includes best practices to prepare for, respond to, and recover from an incident of foodborne illness or the implication of one from a complainant. The information comes from leading government resources including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the CDC, the Council to Improve Foodborne Outbreak Response, ServSafe, and crisis communications professionals, as well as tips from food safety experts and HR leads from independent restaurants and national brands.

The guide includes:

• The leading causes of foodborne illness outbreaks and key prevention measures
• How to handle a complaint
• Working with regulatory/health department officials to isolate the cause and rectify a breach
• Communication do’s and don’ts with employees and guests
• Best practices for engaging with media and on social media

National Food Safety Month

Beginning August 26, National Food Safety Month education will go in-depth on the science of foodborne illness, tips for preventing an outbreak, key strategies for crafting an outbreak response plan and more.

National food and health agencies have identified key restaurant practices that affect the transmission of pathogens known to cause foodborne illness outbreaks. It is the responsibility of every foodservice employee ? from upper management to hourly staff ? to ensure safe dining experiences by understanding the causes of foodborne illnesses and how to prevent them.

Essential topics include:

• The most common foodborne illnesses
• What happens when foodborne illnesses become outbreaks
• Shielding your restaurant from foodborne illness
• Responding to foodborne illness outbreaks
• Building a strong culture of food safety

“Working with the Association on the Always Ready: Foodborne Illness Outbreak guide gave the ServSafe experts an opportunity to drill down on food safety practices that will actively prevent pathogens from spreading. They will focus National Food Safety Month content on what food handlers should know about the causes and how to prevent foodborne illness, because education is continuous,” said Sherman Brown, executive vice president of Business Services for the National Restaurant Association. “Restaurants take food safety and training seriously and safely feed millions of guests every day.”

For more than 30 years, ServSafe – named one of America's Best Online Learning Schools – has been the leader in preparing foodservice workers to deliver safe dining experiences for their guests, while also keeping themselves safe. NFSM, recognized each September, was created in 1994 by the National Restaurant Association to heighten awareness about the importance of food safety education. The 2024 NFSM is sponsored by Tork, an Essity Brand.

Join the NFSM conversation using the hashtag #NFSM2024. Follow ServSafe on Facebook and Twitter for the latest resources. For more information, visit FoodSafetyFocus.com.

The Always Ready: Foodborne Illness Outbreak, Always Ready: Fire, and Always Ready: Natural Disasters guides are available for free to all restaurant operators here.