Training and policies help ensure smooth operations

CKC's annual training day was well attended and has helped support a successful start to the school year. We covered a lot of ground that day, walking through the CKC Good Food policies and procedures manual, food safety procedures, Civil Rights, Offer Versus Serve, general workplace safety protocols and more.

If you didn't receive your CKC policies and procedures manual, please contact Steve for one today. It will be your friend throughout the school year, and where you turn to when you have questions. Keep it in an easy-to-find location. In particular, we suggest you review ordering procedures for pizza and milk, as those items are provided by third-party vendors with their own ordering requirements. We also encourage you to refresh yourself on our inclement weather procedures as winter approaches. It could help you avoid wasted food and unexpected charges in the event of a snow day.

A few other highlights from the day:

1. CKC's menu-change policy: CKC is very happy to work with our clients to tailor our menus to the best of our ability. Change requests must be submitted to  Nancy via email by the 20th of every month for changes to take effect two months out. For example, change requests received by September 20 would be reflected on the November menu. Currently, CKC Good Food is preparing over 80 variations of menus each day. We are proud to be able to successfully tailor our menus and provide a wide variety of meals for your scholars. With so many variations in place, however, our 40-day procedure helps us properly plan and prepare.
2. Watch the 5 food safety flashes from the USDA and you can earn 15 minutes of CE credits for professional standards. Each is 2-4 minutes long and available in both English and Spanish. 
3. MN Food Code Changes: Hot Holding Temperatures (Chapter 3: 4626.0395) have been revised to lower the hot holding temperature for Time/Temperature Control for Safety from 140°F to 135°F.  This will allow operators to keep hot food 5°F lower than was previously allowed, which could have a positive impact on how long hot food may be served. It's been found that food safety hazards related to microbial growth is sufficiently controlled at 135°F.

While the training day was intense, we also incorporated a little fun with a cookout for everyone. They enjoyed grilled burgers by Chef Naj, all the accompaniments and potato salad!