Norovirus For Food Workers must know ?

Norovirus and Working With Food

CDC Vital Signs Report

Preventing Norovirus Outbreaks, Food Service has a Key Role
Norovirus is the leading cause of disease outbreaks from contaminated food in the United States. Learn about food safety practices that can help prevent these outbreaks.

Norovirus is a highly contagious virus that can make you very sick with diarrhea, throwing up, and stomach pain.

Anyone who works with food should know about this virus.

Foods Contaminated with Norovirus Can Make People Sick

Norovirus is the leading cause of illness and outbreaks from contaminated food in the United States.

The virus can easily contaminate food because it is very tiny and infective. It only takes a very small amount of virus particles (as few as 18) to make someone sick.

Food can get contaminated with norovirus when:

• infected people who have stool or vomit on their hands touch the food,
• it is placed on counters or surfaces that have infectious stool or vomit on them, or
• tiny drops of vomit from an infected person spray through the air and land on the food.

Foods can also be contaminated at their source. For example:

• oysters that are harvested from contaminated water, or
• fruit and vegetables that are contaminated in the field.

Food Workers with Norovirus Illness Can Spread the Virus to Others

People who have norovirus illness can shed billions of norovirus particles.

You are most contagious:

• when you are sick with norovirus illness, and
• during the first few days after you recover.

If you work with food when you have norovirus illness, you can spread the virus to others. You can easily contaminate food and drinks that you touch with bare hands. People who consume the food or drinks can get norovirus and become sick. This can cause an outbreak.

Outbreaks of norovirus illness occur in nursing homes, hospitals, restaurants, cruise ships, schools, banquet halls, summer camps, and even at family dinners. These are all places where people often eat food handled or prepared by others.

Norovirus is the leading cause of illness and outbreaks from contaminated food in the United States, Most of these outbreaks occur in the food service settings like restaurants. Infected food workers are frequently the source of the outbreaks, often by touching ready-to-eat foods, such as raw fruits and vegetables, with their bare hands before serving them. However, any food served raw or handled after being cooked can get contaminated with norovirus.

Norovirus outbreaks can also occur from foods, such as oysters, fruits, and vegetables, that are contaminated at their source.

Ways that Food Workers Can Help Prevent Norovirus from Spreading

Ways to Prevent Foodborne Norovirus Outbreaks

Food workers can follow some simple tips to prevent norovirus from spreading:

• Avoid preparing food for others while you are sick and for at least 48 hours after symptoms stop
• Wash your hands carefully and often with soap and water
• Rinse fruits and vegetables and cook shellfish thoroughly
• Clean and sanitize kitchen utensils, counters, and surfaces routinely
• Wash table linens, napkins, and other laundry thoroughly

10 Reasons Why Hospitality Jobs Are Great-h4wo

You make people’s day

1.Whether you’re a concierge in aHOTEL, or a kitchen porter working behind the scenes, or even if you’re involved in the management of a hospitality business, every time you come into work you’re making someone's day that little bit better. Your business is all about people. It’s not about widgets or spreadsheets; it’s about making people happy. So much so that there's a dedicated website for it! Check it out and join in the Smiles of Britain Campaign. 

2. It’s creative

As well as being a people-oriented industry, hospitality is creative. You are creating a product — be that food, drink, or an experience — and there's always scope to dream up new ways of making it more enjoyable for your customers.

3. It opens a door to the world

Every country in the world has a hospitality industry, and the skills you learn here are readily transferable, meaning that a career in hospitality can very easily be the key to discovering new countries, new culture and new people. If you're considering taking your skills abroad, our sister site, Catererglobal.com, is the place to go for international hospitality jobs, cruise ship jobs and jobs in the Middle East.

4. There’s no need to get stuck

There is such enormous scope within the hospitality industry that there’s never any need for you to get stuck in one niche. You could very easily stay with the same employer and in the space of a few years, move between receptionist jobs, reservations manager to concierge and beyond. Where else could you get that sort of variety?

5. You can take on early responsibility

Just as there is the potential for rapid horizontal movement, you can also make your way up the ladder very quickly in hospitality. If you work hard, acquire your qualifications, get on with customers and colleagues, and show initiative, very soon, you'll find yourself in a senior position managing people and projects.

6. Not 9-5

If you’re the sort of person who likes getting up at the same time in the morning, having the same breakfast, putting on a suit and tie, and then catching the same train into the same office, day after day after day, then hospitality probably isn’t for you. It involves a great deal of variety, not only in terms of the hours you work, but also the work you do during those hours.

7. Clear route in

There is a clear set of hospitality qualifications that are accepted across the industry and there are hundreds of places up and down the country where you can train to achieve those qualifications. You can find out more about getting qualified in our dedicated training section.

Springboard, the hospitality charity, can help you with entry-level qualifications, or you can contact the National Skills Academy for Hospitality to find out about their accredited courses.

8. Great perks

If you work in an office then the perks probably don’t go much further than a dismal Christmas party with cheap drinks, dire music and everyone looking a bit awkward. In hospitality things are different. After all, we’re here to help our customers have fun, so we can also make sure we share some of that fun with each other in the form of employee perks. Rubbing shoulders with celebrities and gourmet meals are just some of the perks those in hotel jobs could enjoy.

9. Great atmosphere 

In any workplace, there are always colleagues you don't get on with, and one or two who are a bit unfriendly, but the good news is that not many work in hospitality. We don’t hire people who are unfriendly to our customers, which is why the hospitality industry contains some of the most vibrant, lively and fun people you’ll ever meet.

10. It’s a safe bet

People always need food, drink and somewhere to sleep, don't they? So, even in shaky economic climates like the recent credit crunch, the hospitality industry is relatively secure. In fact, in late 2009, Bob Cotton, CEO of the BHA said of the recession:

"The past 12 months [since October 2008] have been some of the most difficult the [hospitality] industry has experienced for many years, but it is noticeable that bothHOTELS and restaurants are surviving, largely unscathed."

So what are you waiting for?

WORLD BEST FEMALE CHEF 2013

Nadia Santini Dal Pescatore, Mantova, Italy

Dal Pescatore is the only kitchen Santini has ever worked in, making her ascension to the pinnacle of the restaurant game all the more extraordinary

Chatty, warm and utterly unassuming, it's hard to think of a person further removed from the caricature of the top flight chef than Nadia Santini. Dal Pescatore's regular presence on the list and status as one of the very best restaurants in Italy is partly down to Santini's sublime regional cooking but her easy, welcoming presence can be felt in the dining room too and has contributed immeasurably to this family-run success.

Born in San Pietro Mussolino in the Veneto region, Santini was an extremely bright student, studying food chemistry and latterly political science with sociology at the prestigious University of Milan, where she met future husband Antonio Santini. The couple married in 1974, soon returning to Antonio's parents' simple osteria alongside the river Oglio in Mantova, Lombardy, just south of Verona.

Under the careful tutelage of Teresa and Bruna, Antonio's grandmother and mother respectively, Santini learnt to cook traditional Mantuan cuisine: delicate handmade pasta dishes and home-cured meats and fish. Just like the magic that takes place in its wine cellar - a national treasure in its own right - Dal Pescatore's brilliance can largely be attributed to slow paced change. Over the next 20 years, Santini would develop her skills and gradually put her mark on the cuisine.

In 1996 she became the first female chef in Italy to earn three Michelin stars, a rating the restaurant has retained every year since. Dal Pescatore remains a family affair with Bruna - now 84 - still in the kitchen every day and Antonio deftly overseeing the dining room. The children have also followed their parents into the business. Eldest son Giovanni works is at his mother's side in the kitchen and second son Alberto works out front with his father and Giovanni's wife.

The fact that Dal Pescatore is the only kitchen Santini has ever worked in makes her ascension to the pinnacle of the restaurant game all the more extraordinary. Despite her background in food science, the cooking is not remotely high-tech - those that come expecting spherifications and espumas will be disappointed for Santini remains a stickler for tradition.

It's all rooted in what's good to eat but regular trips to top-end restaurants in France - Santini and her husband have a great contacts book as befits their industry status - have in some cases helped turn rustic dishes into works of art. Tortelli comes stuffed to bursting with a mixture of pumpkin, amaretto, Parmesan and mostarda while turbot arrives partnered with a respectably minimalistic garnish of parsley, anchovies and capers suspended in a delicate olive oil sauce. “The cuisine is refined but not changed,” she explains. “Dal Pescatore is an expression of the evolution of the food on our table and the surrounding environment.”

So not quite like nonna used to make, but still rooted in its locality. Largely thanks to Santini, the soul and quality of the food at this idyllic restaurant looks likely to be preserved for the next few generations at least.

for more detail 

Hotel staff must be "empowered" to solve problems

Lothar Quarz, general manager, The Ritz Carlton, Dubai International Financial Centre

“Empowering” your hotel staff to solve problems on their own; is the key to delivering top quality service; according to Lothar Quarz, general manager, The Ritz Carlton, Dubai International Financial Centre.

Quarz told GMs at a workshop entitled Delivering World Class Service at the Great GM Debate held last week in Dubai that all staff at The Ritz Carlton were trained to tackle challenges and problems - including any guest complaints - on their own; without requiring the back up of the GM or senior manager.

“You have to foster the mentality to be proactive,” explained Quarz. “We encourage all our employees to react to guest complaints. You have to teach people to step forward and be confident.”

Quarz explained that all employees at The Ritz Carlton were given a personal budget of $2000 to spend per complaint or incident, in any way they felt necessary to resolve the problem.

“They don’t need my permission. They have my permission. Nobody calls the GM – the employees are empowered to fix their mistakes and then you follow up afterwards.”

He said that while the money seemed like a vast amount; employees that had the responsbility for such a large amount were "cost conscious" and “very rarely” used it.

Quarz admitted it could be a challenge to train people from different backgrounds to feel such empowerement; but he explained it was part of the “philosophy of the Ritz Carlton organisation.” He said it usually took about two years of training to get employees into the mindset of thinking “you own that problem and you can solve it.”

Government Jobs in Hospitality Sector

The hospitality sector offers a large number of enthusiastic opportunities to suitable candidates. There are job positions available with respect to catering, travel and leisure, hotel management, etc…and all these come under hospitality sector.

Even though, the pay scale, educational requirements, job description and packages & benefits differs based on the position acquired by the candidates, most of them find their job enjoyable and stimulating.

Government companies in the hospitality sector in India:

A candidate hoping to find jobs in government organizations in the hospitality sector, can look for job opportunities in some of the government organizations like:

• Hotels run by Indian Tourism Development Corporation like

o Hotel Qutub located at Delhi

o Temple Bay Ashok Beach Resort located at Mamallapuram

o Bharatpur Forest Lodge

o Khajuraho Ashok

o Ashok Yatri Niwas and

o Hotel Ashok located at Delhi

• Hotels run by Hotel Corporation of India like

o Cantaur Lake View Hotel located at Srinagar

o Cantaur Hotel located at Delhi Airport

Apart from these public sector companies, each state in India has its own tourism development corporations like Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation, Andhra Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation, etc…

What are the different job designations available in the Hospitality sector of Government?

A person with an objective to find placement in the hospitality sector can opt for any of the following positions:

• Marketing & Sales Executives in Hotels

• Client executives in government run resorts

• Customer relation/guest relation executive

• Hospitality staff in different government organizations

What is the educational qualification required for entering the hospitality sector in government organizations?

For finding a job opportunity in the government hospitality sector, a candidate must have any of the following educational qualifications:

• Master of Science in Hospitality Administration

• Certificate course in hotel and catering management

• Post Graduate Diploma in International trade

• Bachelor of Arts in Tourism & Hospitality management

• Bachelor of Science in Hotel management

• Diploma in

o Hotel management

o Confectionery and bakery

o Book keeping and hotel reception

Scope of the Hospitality sector jobs in India:

The success of Hospitality sector of any country lies in the support and services offered to the visitors and guests of the country. Therefore, government takes every step to develop this sector.

This sector goes hand in hand with the tourism and travel sector of a country and for the development of the tourism and travel sector, hospitality sector offers a lion share. Therefore, Government organizations always look for appropriate candidates for this sector thereby offering a wide scope of employment opportunities.

Read more here: http://entrance-exam.net/government-jobs-in-hospitality-sector/#ixzz2XVDWlKUD

India'Largest professional b2b annual trade show for the Food ,Drink and Hospitality Market

FOOD HOSPITALITY WORLD

Food Hospitality World combines the strengths of two of the world’s leading exhibition organisers - Fiera Milano Group and The Indian Express Limited Group.

Food Hospitality World (FHW) merges two of Fiera Milano’s most successful exhibitions, Tuttofood (food and beverage) and Host (hospitality industry) with HospitalityWorld - India’s leading hospitality trade show and Taste - Mumbai’s international food and beverage show; thus combining international and local expertise and creating the biggest professional B2B event for the Indian Subcontinent’s food, drink and hospitality sectors.

http://www.fhwexpo.in/index.php

Hotel School Students raise awareness about Food Wastage

Here’s a video sent  by IMI Luzern hotel management school students, who are trying to raise awareness about food wastage.

Video Description: Students from IMI University Centre in Switzerland take the initiative and launch the “Food Wasted Campaign 2010″. Get involved and follow the movement: “I will finish my food today” There are no EXCUSES anymore for wasting food! Stop hunger now, start from yourself!