Food safety is a crucial subject. We tend to underestimate it at times, but that, in no way, can blur the importance of hygienic food in our day-to-day lives. Food safety begins right from buying vegetables from the market to washing them in the kitchen, chopping them, cooking them at right temperature and of course storing it properly. We all our extremely familiar with this process as we witness it , do it almost every day in our kitchens.
However, this is enough only if we are cooking for ourselves or a family of three to four members and some friends. When it comes to cooking for a large number of people like in a restaurant or mess, involving variety of meats and veggies in bulk, a professional course becomes compulsory.
And therefore, food handlers , food manager and everyone employed in food service is required to take a food safety training course . The United States health department requires anyone and everyone involved in food service and handling to have appropriate food handler training , while it requires food manager to have a food manager certification .
This means, everyone involved in food business, including all middle and top management managers chefs and food hygiene trainers needs to have an online course or online training on food safety .
The food safety course teaches how to handle, cook and store food hygienically, so to prevent contamination, keeping bacteria like salmonella and E-coli at bay.

Food safety is a wide category. There are several types of courses available, go for the one stated by your local health department .
Some of the online training courses around food safety are-
1. Nutrition and Health
This food health and safety online course teaches about the risk factors involved in cooking and handling food . It explains about causes and effects of food poisoning, importance of personal hygiene, food hazards and prevention. This Nutrition and Health Food Safety course is more appropriate for people directly involved in cooking like the head chefs.

2. Food Safety and Personal hygiene in the professional kitchen
Food safety and good hygiene are directly proportional. Hygienically prepared food will always be safe for consumption. This online course educates on how to maintain hygiene while preparing and presenting food. It explains food safety laws to make sure the workers of the food service sector abide by them and follow highest hygiene standards. The course also tells how food manager and food handler can prevent causes of illness and how to ensure safe food in pandemic situations.

3. Food Safety Training and Safe Procedures
It is an indispensable course for workers involved in food service operations. It will educate on personal cleanliness, hotel and kitchen cleanliness. The course will include the guidelines of cleaning procedures manually, and how to sanitize utensils and kitchen tools and equipment correctly. The course also teaches food handlers on how to store food in the right environment, and prevent accidents and hazards in the kitchen. The food safety training course will shed light on causes of foodborne illness and its preventive measures.

Questions mostly revolve around food safety norms, contamination, foodborne illness, cooking and storing methods . If you being a food handler , preparing for a food safety exam , here is a list of must-to-read topics-

• food allergens and allergen management
• Covid-19 preventions
• Food contamination
• cross-contamination
• importance of personal hygiene
• causes and effects of food-borne illness
• potentially hazardous foods or high-risk foods
• proper food storage, preparation and cooking methods and techniques
• time and temperature control
• food safety
regulations mandated by the United States health department

The online course for food safety training or food handling course or is not more than 3 to 8 hours long. You can complete the online training course within 4 days of enrollment. Every institute has program varying in length. You need to score minimum 70% in order to pass the food safety training or food handler training program .

All restaurants are mandated to have a food handler's permit in the United States. However, the requirements to obtain a food handler card may vary from state to state. For this, you need to check with your local health department. In case you operate a food business without a food handler certificate , the local health department can impose a fine.
For instance , procedure of obtaining an Arizona food handlers card must be different than getting a handler certificate in Illinois or Georgia.
The state of Arizona requires at least one employee with a food handler card permit to be present at the establishment. In Maricopa county of Arizona , workers in the food service sector are required to have a food handler card within 30 days of employment. Only the food handler certificate obtained by doing an online course from an ANSI accredited institute.
The food safety online training course is available in English Spanish , Chinese and Korean languages.

A variety of e-institutes across United States offer Food Safety training or food handler training program . But, make sure to enroll yourself with the ANSI accredited institutes or websites only.

Also, read the terms of use and rights reserved before you take a food handler course

Assures food hygiene and public health- Every year nearly 48 million Americans fall sick, over 120k are hospitalised while 3k die each year due to foodborne illness, as per the Centre's of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
A well trained food handler will understand the importance of food hygiene and consequences if it is neglected. So, food service employees who have undergone a Food Safety training program , will make sure to abide by the safety norms.

Any person involved in food service sectorfood preparation, food handling , storage is required to have a food handler card by the United States health department . Similarly, food managers need to have a food manger certificate . These food safety courses ensure that the best hygiene standards are followed by the restaurants and eateries for public health.
If you are thinking to make career in food business, Make Sure you take the Food Safety course .

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