Do you know that there are approximately 5.4 million cases of food poisoning a year in Australia?  Of these 120 will end with the loss of someone’s life.  All of these cases of food poisoning could be prevented if proper steps had been taken in the preparation of the food products they ingested.  I am sure that everyone in your kitchen wants and tries to comply with food safety standards, however, mistakes happen.  Or what if those standards are simply not enough?  What if there was more you could do to protect the people who are entrusting you with their well-being?  Would you take the opportunity to learn enough to guarantee your foods safety?

A food safety expert can save your kitchen the embarrassment of causing people to fall ill after eating your food.  With about 5.4 million cases of food poisoning a year, it is only a matter of time before someone gets sick from your kitchen; unless you are willing to do all that it takes to prevent it from happening.  By allowing a food safety expert to assist your staff, they can ensure that no one will get food poisoning from your kitchen.  Wouldn’t you enjoy that piece of mind?

A food safety expert can also make your establishment a more profitable one.  As people begin to talk about the wonderful experience they had dining in your restaurant, more guests will come in to try your menu for themselves.  What pride you would feel knowing you were running a place people loved to come into then told their friends about it.

AGB is the only Australian company owned and operated by an apprentice Chef of the Year.  Gavin Buckett is a food and safety expert and is making it his mission to teach restaurant owners and managers how to better protect their patrons and their businesses.

There are different food safety programs available to suit your individual needs.  For example, they can have their auditors come to your establishment and provide weekly, monthly, quarterly, bi-annual, or annual audits depending on your desire.  AGB can also provide your kitchen with management solutions such as; menu writing, cost control, equipment recommendations, event planning, sourcing suppliers, food preparation and handling training, product and recipe development, and allergen controls.  In addition, AGB also has a food safety compliance system.  It is a twelve-month course that only requires 10 minutes of your time each week.  This program teaches you tips, techniques and new teachings, all of which will make your restaurant a success.

When your establishment is run properly; is clean, organised, and putting out delicious quality products, word spreads.  When your restaurant is dirty, disorganised and putting out subpar products, word spreads.  What do you want people to be saying about your kitchen?

The HACCP systems designed by AGB Solutions Pty Ltd are practical and easy to read and each program is specifically designed for each client’s business. As most clients are implementing HACCP for the first time, AGB Solutions have designed an 11 Point Checklist for HACCP Certification Success so that we can provide our Guarantee to your success. Click here to see what we include in our 11 point checklist.

Recently, Food Processing News did a write up about me – Gavin Buckett, in their Spring 2008 edition. While I generally avoid the limelight, I thought I might share the story with you, my devoted blog readers.

Here goes:

Gavin Buckett completed the Diploma of Food Technology in 2002 and the Diploma of Confectionery Manufacturing in 2003.

Gavin found a passion for food through a part time job while studying Accounting in 1989 and has been involved in the food industry ever since. Fifteen years cooking included winning the Blue Flame Award for Victorian Apprentice of the Year and the Daryl Cox Memorial Trophy. Work also included stints in Singapore and Malaysia.

In 2003, while still cooking, Gavin gained tertiary qualifications in Food Technology and Confectionery Manufacturing at William Angliss Institute.

Gavin is a registered food safety auditor and food safety trainer and specialises in the preparation of HACCP certified food management systems and food allergen management solutions.

“I went to William Angliss Institute for a couple of years studying Food Technology and Confectionery Manufacturing. At the graduation dinner for the course, I was talking to the course coordinator and he gave me the contact details of someone who he said I should call. So I rang her up and introduced myself. She had a client who needed help achieving HACCP accreditation and had too much work on. We developed a relationship and I began to take on her overflow work.” That’s how I started my business in 2003 – totally by accident! I made one phone call and all of a sudden I needed an ABN.”

“I started AGB Solutions Pty Ltd with my wife, Angela in 2005. We are a specialist provider of Food Safety Solutions and Quality Assurance Services to all areas of the food industry including food and beverage manufacturers, distributors, restaurants, caterers, hospitals and aged care facilities to name just a few.”

Future plans for AGB Solutions include working closely with the DHS on the allergen training project, preparation of web based manuals for commercial and domestic clients, an increased range of specialised food safety products and regular food safety based workshops.

Gavin can be contacted at gavin@agbsolutions.com.au or through his website at www.australianfoodsafety.com.au.

What a busy week the last week of September 2008 was for AGB Solutions. AGB Solutions had three clients all have their HACCP implementation audit in the same week. There were a number of unique points about this achievement:

1. It was the first time that we have had three implementation audits in the same week
2. It was the first time that we have had a non food business achieve HACCP certification
3. It was the first time that we have had a non Victorian client become HACCP certified

In fact ALL three clients were non Victorian businesses. We are certainly proud to let you know that we have now had HACCP programs certified in Queensland, New South Wales and Tasmania. In fact we are not stopping with these three clients. We are currently in discussions with prospective clients in Sydney, Adelaide, Launceston and on the Sunshine Coast, as well as a number of Melbourne and regional Victoria based businesses.

AGB Solutions would like to congratulate the following companies on achieving HACCP Certification:

1. QT Trading Pty Ltd in Sydney.
2. Humico Pty Ltd on the Gold Coast
3. Central Choice Foods in Launceston

I will be creating separate blogs in coming weeks on all three companies, however in case you can’t wait to know what they do:

QT Trading Pty Ltd is an importer and wholesaler of a range of black and green leaf tea products produced by the German tea house Ronnefeldt. Ronnefeldt was established in 1823 and is engaged in blending and packaging of teas grown and processed in the most popular tea grouping areas such as India, Sri Lanka and China. QT Trading has the Australian, New Zealand and Fiji distribution rights for Ronnefeldt Tea, and supply exclusively to guests in 5 star hotels, boutique accommodation, casinos’ and guest houses. These include:

1. Accor Hotel Group (Sofitel and Novotel)
2. Park Hyatt and Grand Hyatt Hotels
3. Crown Casino
4. The Windsor Hotel Melbourne

If you are interested in tea check out www.ronnefeldt.com and contact Igor at ronnefeldt@optusnet.com.au. My favourite tea is the Irish Malt variety (The extravagant aroma of Irish Whisky with a hint of cocoa blended with a malty Assam tea). YUM!

Humico Pty Ltd provides environmental solutions for any business utilising refrigeration like hotels, restaurants, hospitals, butchers, cafes, supermarkets etc.

Humico Pty Ltd supply and service a humidity and bacteria control filter that when placed into a refrigerated environment between -20˚ C to +15˚ C; functions as a humidity buffer by controlling humidity levels to assist refrigeration equipment to achieve optimal storage conditions FASTER and more EFFICIENTLY, REDUCING COSTS and INCREASING PROFITS!

A non toxic filter that reduces your energy costs and servicing AND increases the shelf life of the contents of the refrigerated environment, that has AQIS approval for use in meat establishments, is HACCP Certified and has service technicians Australia Wide? Think you want to find out more? Check out www.humico.com.au contact Steve Dods at steved@humico.com.au.

Central Choice Foods is an eighteen month old Food Warehouse and Distribution Company that is owned and operated by Tasmanians that services the northern part of Tasmania within the 063 and 064 telephone area codes.

Central Choice Foods does not carry thousands and thousands of products like some other wholesalers. They instead specialise in a core group of products including:

1. Smallgoods
2. Fresh and frozen meats
3. Frozen Fish and seafood products
4. Frozen Poultry
5. Frozen Cakes
6. Pastries and puddings
7. Cream and cheese
8. Biscuits
9. Condiments including honey, vinegars, mayonnaises and sauces
10. Antipastos

Central Choice Foods are also an approved distributor of Primo Smallgoods.

Are you in Northern Tasmania and want to be serviced by a HACCP certified family owned company? Contact Debbie Ratcliffe now at debbie@centralchoicefoods.com.au.

Are you wanting to join this list of HACCP Certified businesses?

Contact Gavin NOW and find out why Steve from Humico stated that AGB Solutions provided

“Great service and was genuinely interested in the success of the program that was designed for our company”

and why Igor from QT Trading emailed us in the middle of the night to tell us:

“Thank you very much for the congratulations that you sent to me. Your contribution to our successful certification was the main factor in QT Trading achieving HACCP certification.

I appreciate your offer to assist me with the verification activities for the next twelve months; in fact it is gladly accepted! There is no doubt that our business needs your expertise in the food industry and being associated with AGB Solutions Pty Ltd makes me feel like I am always playing for the winning team!  Please find attached the completed feedback form. I did not have any other opinion but to mark your performance as “exceptional” across the board.”

Gavin can be contacted at gavin@agbsolutions.com.au or by calling 0422 922 883

Click on the video above and see how the process works, and remember the guarantee – all AGB Solutions clients WILL PASS their HACCP certication – you aren’t paying for an hourly service. You’re paying for the result – that is getting HACCP accredited and making food safety a priority in your kitchen.

Enjoy the video, share it with friends, and if you have a food safety need that I can help you with, call me on 0422 922 883 or email me at gavin@agbsolutions.com.au .

Here’s to safe food,

Gavin Buckett

Examples of these solutions are contained below:

Travel Essentials commenced business in late 2004, primarily supplying breakfast packs for guests in hotels and serviced apartments. Later, the company began providing packs for conferences, events and as corporate gifts.

Angus McLeay, Managing Director of Travel Essentials tells me that “Our packs are ideal for off-site venues, travellers and major events. They are light, easily transported, typically shelf stable, and can suit a wide variety of purposes…Travelfare packs have been used on trains, for convenient breakfasts, for day trip snacks, bus groups and for arrival / welcome gifts for delegates.” A perfect example of the style of Travelfare packs is the new Pamper pack (photo above) – a collection of pampering tools for travellers, safe to take on board in hand luggage, and a presentable corporate gift – all for $10.00 (inc. GST).

As well as traveller packs Travel Essentials can custom make packs to suit client needs for Corporate retreats, events and Promotional Kits.

Travelfare packs have featured in the New Products Showcase at the Asia-Pacific Incentives and Meetings Exhibition (AIME 2008), the packs have also been shown on travel segments on Channel 10’s “9am with David and Kim”, and on Channel 7’s “Coxy’s Big Break”.

Travel Essentials was a finalist in the Quest Serviced Apartment Supplier Awards, 2007 and has Preferred Supplier status with a number of national accommodation chains and ANZ Bank.

If you are interested in any of these products, you can contact Angus McLeay:

P: (03) 9804 0099

E: angusmc@travelessentials.com.au

W: www.travelessentials.com.au

Travel Essentials Pty Ltd contacted AGB Solutions late last year, as one of their main customers (the Accor Hotel Group) had decided that all suppliers of food and beverages needed to be HACCP Certified. Now Travel Essentials Pty Ltd, is not what we would call a “typical” client. When we commenced the development of HACCP for Travel Essentials Pty Ltd, they only had one employee. That’s right ONE employee. Many companies I speak to think that HACCP is only for big companies. We have implemented HACCP for fourth generation family businesses to start up businesses with only one employee. HACCP is an internationally recognised preventative management system, and the same principles apply to multi national companies. Travel Essentials Pty Ltd have been able to implement these principles to their business, ensuring that their products are safer than their competitors.

In fact, one of Travel Essentials Pty Ltd main competitors advertises that their packs “(company name) offers it’s clients leading brand name products produced in HACCP accredited premises”.

Now this is a warning for everyone. This company WASN’T HACCP certified. When quizzed on their HACCP status, they repeated the above statement, which I found confusing. When I quizzed them further, they clarified the statement by saying that they were NOT HACCP certified; they were only stating that their suppliers were.

How many of your suppliers may be telling you the same thing? We suggest that you get a copy of their HACCP certificate to verify certification, and update your copy when it expires. Some companies loose their HACCP certification. It is also important to check the scope that is on the certificate, to ensure that it covers the products they are supplying you. Some companies get parts of their business or particular products HACCP certified, rather than their entire production range.

If you are thinking that you need HACCP, please contact Gavin now: gavin@agbsolutions.com.au or download our HACCP Whitepaper from www.agbsolutions.com.au.

In many cases of food poisoning, Salmonella is the culprit. Raw poultry and eggs are generally the source of this bacterium in foods, but this bacterium can also be carried by contamination from faeces as well as pet reptiles.

Salmonella is a bacterium which can affect many types of food items. Usually, raw poultry and eggs are the prime suspects in salmonella related food poisoning cases, but contamination from faeces and pet reptiles can also carry these bacteria. There are two ways to prevent salmonella form causing food poisoning which are guaranteed to be effective: thoroughly cooking food before serving and regular, thorough hand washing before, during and after cooking or eating.

Escherichia coli (or E-coli for short) is a form of bacteria which can cause serious illness or even death. Found naturally inside of the human body and in some foods, some strains can be lethal. E-coli produces harmful, toxic substances and includes unpleasant (to say the least) symptoms including watery and/or bloody diarrhea. A healthy adult can generally weather a case of E-coli food poisoning, but the elderly, the sick and young children are at risk of getting very ill if infected. As with salmonella, the way to prevent E-coli infection is thorough cooking and regular hand washing, along with careful cleaning of all cooking areas. Hand washing should become a thoroughly ingrained habit. You use your hands to pick up everything – even harmful microbes.

With all of the stories about food poisoning in the news, it’s understandable that some people are a little nervous about dining out. To make sure that your establishment keeps your customers safe from the risk of infection, be sure to follow the HACCP principles. HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points and is a set of principles designed to make sure that foods prepared for people to eat are safe. Many of these regulations are simply common sense, such as putting milk back into the refrigerator after use or dating items before freezing.

Being in charge of a restaurant means that you have to keep a handle on a lot of things at once – make sure that HACCP principles are at the top of your list. All of the hard work you’ve put into your business could be lost if someone gets ill from your food due to a preventable mistake by an employee unaware of the food safety regulations.

Having a HACCP certified kitchen is very marketable. If you have received stickers or certifications from health officials, be sure to place them where your customers can see them. This way they know that the food which you are serving to them was prepared in a clean kitchen which complies with health and safety regulations and they can dine in without getting anxious.