Is Your Commercial Kitchen Contaminated?

Food safety is one of the first things students learn at catering college, however it’s easy to get complacent in a busy commercial kitchen environment.

All commercial kitchens prepare and serve a multitude of food types during each sitting. This includes both raw and cooked food. Colour coding your kitchen allows chefs to separate these different food types to avoid cross contamination which can be dangerous to your customers.

Here’s a reminder of which colours to use and the type of kitchen equipment that should be colour coded.

Which Colours Should I Use?

Red: Raw Meat

Red is the colour used for preparing raw meat. Red chopping boards and red handled knives should be used. It is important to be extremely cautious when preparing raw meat. Raw meat contains bacteria so it must be kept away from other areas of food preparation to reduce the risk of contamination.

Yellow: Cooked Meat

Use yellow boards and yellow handled knives for cooked meats. It is very important to keep cooked meats separate from raw meat.

Blue: Raw Fish

Raw fish should be prepared using blue boards and blue knives. When frying fish in a deep fat fryer, it is important not to use it for anything else as fish is a common allergen. You may need a second fryer for food such as chicken and chips.

White: Pastry, Dairy & Bakery

White is generally used for pastry, dairy and bakery products. Breads, cheese and pastries should be prepared on white boards using knives with white handles. Remember that eggs should be prepared separately as they can contain the salmonella bacteria.

Green: Fruit & Salad

Use green chopping boards and green handled knives with green handles for salad and fruit.

Brown: Vegetables

Have brown chopping boards and knives available for all vegetable preparation.

Which Utensils Must be Colour Coded?

We would recommend colour coding kitchen equipment such as:

• Knives
• Chopping Boards
• Food Safety Labels
• Thermometers
• Utensils such as tongs
• Pour ‘n’ Store Bottles
• Squeeze Dispensers

It is advisable to display signs in your kitchen to act as a constant reminder to staff – ensuring that your commercial kitchen remains contaminant free!

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