Most, if not all, packaged perishable food products, will have either a use by date on them or a display until date; in practice, these are exactly the same thing. After this date, it is either illegal for the Branch to use them or the quality will have deteriorated to the point at which the product will not be suitable to be used. In either case, they cannot be used.

If a product is still on shelves after its sell by date, it will have to be thrown away (recorded as wastage), which is both costly and wasteful to the company (suppliers must be paid even if stock is not sold). Therefore, it is imperative that sell by dates are strictly adhered to, and that products which will perish earlier be used as quickly as possible.

Chefs, on the most part, will simply walk up to a shelf and take the front most box of the product they are looking for; this is especially true if they are in a hurry. They will generally also, unless they are specifically looking for a product that will last longer, not pay much attention to sell by/use by dates. If products with an early sell by date are at the front, and later ones at the back, they will naturally be used first. If things are organised the other way round, or stock is improperly rotated, newer stock will be used first, leaving out of date stock sitting on the shelves which will have to be thrown away.

Rotation also applies to loose products; in this case, there is usually no set sell by date, and produce must merely look fit to eat. Older stock is merely placed on top of newer stock to rotate it.

 

The need for stock rotation, dating and labelling of all products is absolutely essential in the kitchen and it can’t be stressed enough the legal and moral responsibilities of all members of the staff and management to uphold and follow these very strict guidelines at all times, it is after all people’s lives that we are putting at risk if we don’t follow the rules and regulations set down for us. Regular spot checks will be made by members of the The Chinese Buffet management team to ensure that you are abiding by these rules.

 

Labelling:

Reasons to do it?

 

• To be able to instantly recognise what the product is.

• To instantly see when it was prepared or defrosted.

• To instantly see when its shelf life should expire.

• To ensure that the older stock with the least remaining shelf life is used up first.

• To ensure the least amount of wastage leading to higher profits.

• To ensure all members of staff can keep up with shelf lives and correct use of products.

• To abide by food and safety regulations.

• To morally fulfil our obligations and provide good quality, healthy, safe, and tasty food to the general public.

• We at The Chinese Buffet take great pride in our products and want them to reach the public in the best and quality, and controlled conditions as are possible, and take a great deal of care to ensure that the correct system is put into place, you will be letting us down as well as yourself and your customers if you don’t follow these procedure

 

How to do it!

 

• All products to be frozen need to be dated on the day of freeze with the use by date ( 2 mths)

• When brought out to defrost, products should be clearly labelled with the sticky labels stating the new use by date and the date defrosted and recorded on the defrost monitor form, the products must be visible checked and recorded on the form to ensure they remain within the safe zone below 5C throughout the defrost time after which they will be chilled then again recorded when cooked so as to prove used within the use by date.

• As soon as vegetables have been prepared they should be put into plastic containers or bags and clearly labelled with the use by date and the prepared on date usually 3 days but see below table if not sure.

• As soon as all meat batch products have been cooked they again should be recorded on the monitor forms with correct temps then controlled throughout the cooling down monitor forms and be chilled to 21C within 1.5 - 2 hrs max and away in the fridge chilled to 5C by 4 hrs max.

• As soon as all king prawns and shrimps are defrosted they should be put into plastic containers and clearly labelled with use by date within 24 hrs.

• All frozen sauces should be dated with use by date (usually 3- 5 days, except bbq sauce which is 48 hrs)

 

All food stuffs once prepared or defrosted should follow the strict guidelines for use by date, and after the designated time is up should be discarded to the bin. This makes the need for diligence and planning to be applied to all items brought out, to ensure that the products are getting sold, and not thrown away because of poor estimation of the amount of business each day. See table below for various product shelf lives.

 

As well as following all the routines, it is also up to the staff to be able to make informed decisions about the quality of the various products, as there are lots of variables that can affect the guidelines, this is why it important that all relevant temp checks and records are followed and checked, even then it is still extremely important that you follow basic guidelines and check for tell-tale signs such as bad smell, texture colour etc if unsure always speak to management chefs before using the product

 

Recommended Food Storage Chart (guidelines)

 

The following charts provide general recommended storage times for various food products stored under optimum conditions. Storage generally is not recommended under conditions where no time is listed in the chart. Consumers should always purchase food of excellent quality and never temperature abuse food for maximum shelf-life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Ensuring that the correct storage criteria have been met, and that any products going over the recommended time limits have been discarded, correct cooking temperatures should be abided by see “Temperature control guide”)