Food hygiene and safety; a fundamental issue for contract catering

In France, Elior drew up a prevention guide specific to COVID19 with the collaboration of Doctor François-Henri Bolnot, who is a veterinary doctor, a doctor in microbiology and a professor of food safety. The contents of this guide have also been validated by occupational medicine.

After their gradual reopening, Elior’s corporate restaurants were audited by approved external laboratories so as to guarantee the independence of the results. Since June 2019, 55 audits have been carried out making it possible to verify their compliance with: Elior’s specific COVID19 cleaning and disinfection procedures,  the instructions for dining room organization and guest reception (plexiglass walls, guest flow, table arrangement, collection of condiments in self-service areas), and rules concerning  communicating with guests and wearing protective equipment for employees.

Serunion is the first contract catering provider in Spain to receive AENOR (Asociación Española de Normalización y Certificación) certification for its safety and hygiene measures implemented during the Covid 19 crisis.

AENOR certification is an external guarantee of the effectiveness of measures applied by companies at all levels: risk management, occupational health management, training, organizational measures (control of maximum reception capacities, social distancing), protective measures (use of personal protective equipment), as well as cleaning and hygiene practices. AENOR also ensures that these initiatives comply with the guidelines set by the Spanish Ministry of Health with regard to prevention and hygiene.

This certification follows on after a series of measures implemented by Serunion for its employees and customers: control of maximum reception capacities, guarantee of the maintenance of safety distances, supply of masks, gloves, gels and visors to employees, training teams on the pandemic, installation of partitions in payment areas, promotion of contact-less payment, etc. As such, this certification is recognition of the responsiveness and effectiveness of the security measures adopted by Serunion to offer safe dining areas to all its customers and guests during the sanitary crisis.

Proposing a catering offer that is adapted to the sanitary constraints in force sometimes requires reinventing restaurant concepts. In the United States, Elior launched its Safe Café concept to ensure the health and safety of customers, in line with the recommendations of the health authorities.

All Elior restaurants meeting the following standards may display the Safe Café logo:

• Improved disinfection practices employed to prevent the spread of the virus.
• Social distancing: employees and guests required to maintain a social distance of one meter, as recommended by health organizations.
• Personal protective equipment: employees are provided with protective equipment as recommended by the health authorities.
• Monitoring employees’ health so as to ensure the safety of teams and customers.
• Supply-chain continuity to avoid disruption.

The presence of this logo thus assures customers that the restaurant staff respect the strict health and safety standards.