Tools & Solutions

The next round of National Restaurant Association study group meetings begins in February.

The NRA's executive study groups are bi-annual conferences for multi-unit restaurant company executives in human resources, risk and safety, nutrition, quality assurance, internal audit, marketing, information technology, finance and quality assurance.

The first conference of the year is a joint meeting of the Human Resources and Risk & Safety Managers study groups. The meeting is set for Feb. 7 through 9 in Las Vegas.

The Information Technology group is scheduled to meet Feb. 20 through 23 in Austin, Texas.

Other upcoming meetings include:

• Nutrition, March 20 through 22 in Portland, Ore.
• Internal Auditors, March 28 through 30, Orlando.
• Marketing Executives Group, May 2 through 4, Chicago.
• Supply Chain Management, May 3 and 4, Chicago.
• Finance and Tax Executives, June 27 through 29, Boston.

Participants gain insight into specific business challenges through presentations from their peers and other experts. In addition to the education sessions, the meetings offer benchmarking, best practices and networking opportunities.

Restaurant operators can help alert employees to tax credits that might put extra money in their pockets.

Many workers don't realize they qualify for the Earned Income or Child Tax credits. Nor do they know how to claim the credits or where to find free filing assistance.

The National Restaurant Association encourages members to educate employees and guests about the credits by marking EITC Awareness Day (Friday, Jan. 27).

The National Restaurant Association has officially launched its Health Care Knowledge Center, a website that offers information, tools and solutions to help restaurateurs understand the effects of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on their operations and comply with its requirements.

The website was developed specifically for members of the National Restaurant Association to help explain the new health-care law, how it affects restaurateurs and to help them deal with the implementation of the law.

"We're pleased to announce the launch of our Health Care Knowledge Center, a website we developed to be a one-stop, online shop that will provide answers on health-care reform implementation and solutions for our members," said James Balda, the NRA's chief marketing and communications officer.

The National Restaurant Association has earned American National Standards Institute (ANSI) ASTM E2659 accreditation for its ServSafe® Food Handler training and assessment program. California recently enacted a law that makes accredited food safety training mandatory for all restaurant employees who handle, prepare or store food. ServSafe Food Handler is the leading program for food handler training in California.

The California Food Handler Card law was modified on Sept. 6, 2011, per SB 303 to require accreditation for approved training programs. As a result, only programs with the ANSI/ASTM E2659-09 Standard Practice for Certificate Programs Accreditation are qualified to issue compliant California Food Handler cards.

In addition to earning the ANSI ASTM E2659 accreditation, the ServSafe Food Handler program also received two commendations by ANSI. The first commendation is for a well-designed curriculum developed by a highly skilled team with advanced degrees. The second commendation is for the ServSafe California Call Center, which provides customer service by offering real-time, personal assistance to students in multiple languages by staff that is familiar with the law, the program and the state’s geography.

With National Food Safety Education Month (NFSEM) winding down, it’s important to keep in mind that food safety is a priority every day of the year. Without proper food safety practices in place, foodborne illnesses can occur, which could lead to complaints, poor reviews, additional health inspections and, ultimately, loss of customers. Sanitation and hygiene are essential when it comes to food safety.

The National Restaurant Association partnered with SCA, the makers of the Tork® brand of away-from-home paper products, for this year’s campaign. SCA provides resources to foodservice operators, such as advice from expert professional and academic authorities, best practices and hygienic product solutions.

“We see this ongoing partnership as an opportunity to continue offering education to the foodservice industry. As SCA celebrates its tenth anniversary in North America, our goal is to involve and commit more operators to food safety and hygiene practices so they understand how critical it is to the health and wellness of their patrons, as well as their bottom line,” says Suzanne Cohen, foodservice segment director for SCA Tissue North America.

National Food Safety Education Month (NFSEM) is in its final week of free training activities. Week five includes information for servers, busers and dishwashers to correctly handle utensils and equipment.

The National Restaurant Association's 2011 NFSEM campaign focused attention on "Lessons Learned from the Health Inspection," teaching foodservice employees about common tasks that health inspectors cover.

The training activity sheet for week five - available for free download - emphasizes the importance of washing hands between handling dirty and clean dishes, storing cleaned and sanitized items upside down, and handling ice buckets and scoops the right way.

The National Restaurant Association is spreading the word about its efforts to promote healthy living. This week, Vice President of Industry Affairs and Food Policy Joan McGlockton shared the message with participants in the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s (CBCF) Annual Legislative Conference in Washington.

The conference, which is attended by thousands of participants from across the country, welcomed McGlockton's news about the Association's exciting new Kids LiveWell initiative to help parents identify healthful children’s menu options when dining out.

“The National Restaurant Association is taking a proactive role in helping the restaurant industry address the nation’s healthy living challenges and provide more options for consumers,” said McGlockton.

Restaurants participating in National Food Safety Education Month will be focusing on what to watch for when storing food this week.

This year's theme, Lessons Learned from the Health Inspection, highlights food safety practices that health inspectors commonly cover.

Week 4 of the National Restaurant Association's month-long campaign to raise awareness about the importance of food safety education and training addresses food storage and labeling.

The free, downoadable training activity sheet teaches foodservice employees to store food in containers made for food and keep those containers sealed or covered, label food containers with a use-by-date, and to not refill condiment bottles by combining near-empty ones.

Ben the dishwasher was washing equipment in a three-compartment sink. He scraped the items, scrubbed them with a detergent solution, rinsed them, and then dipped them quickly into the sanitizer solution. Then he placed each item upside down to dry. Did Ben do the right thing when it came to cleaning and sanitizing?

That is one of the questions included in the training activity of week three of this year's National Food Safety Education Month, which highlights tasks and procedures to keep in mind for a health inspection - and for day to day operations year-round. Week three of the campaign's free materials focuses on cleaning and sanitizing.

The training activity sheet details how to correctly clean and sanitize food contact surfaces, mix sanitizer solution, and store cloths used for wiping food spills. Then asks a series of questions to test your knowledge.

Handling food is an important part of food safety education. The National Restaurant Association's National Food Safety Education Month is focusing on just that in its second week of free training activities.

The 10-minute in-store activity sheet, available for download at www.ServSafe.com/NFSEM, includes things that health inspectors watch for when it comes to employees handling food. It teaches employees to avoid touching their bodies and then touching food, and how to use gloves correctly. For example, to wash hands immediately after scratching or sneezing, and to throw away gloves after completing a task.

The training sheet then asks employees to correctly identify the correct way to handle food and use gloves in a series of images. The NFSEM materials also include a printable poster for kitchens and staff areas.

All NFSEM training materials are based on the National Restaurant Association's ServSafe program. This year's NFSEM is sponsored by SCA, a global hygiene company and makers of the Tork brand of away-from-home paper products.