Do your Company Policies & Procedures protect your establishment if something goes wrong?

It is an important subject and is often only realised after an accident or near-miss. Owners then realise they need a solution like Control Catering, by which time it might be too late. When a problem occurs it all comes back to the Owner or CEO of the company and its procedures. Having systems and evidence in place designed to avoid issues goes a long way towards preventing prosecution.

What are the problems that systems like Control Catering are solving?

One of the most important points is that no staff member should give out verbal information about ingredients. The concise and accurate recipe sheet which for instance, Control Catering will guide you to create, provides the written documentation and due diligence that can be presented to the customer whose well-being is of the utmost importance.

• Systems like Control Catering provide more control and visibility with powerful management and documentation tools to train, support and encourage accountability.
• They allow you to easily manage ingredients and quickly identify allergens, calories and price changes.
• Through integration they permit information curated and managed in one single place to be published to websites, menus and EPOS systems.
• Help chefs control their budget with accurate component and recipe costs.
• They help prevent cross-contamination through clear work-instructions, identify the use of alternative ingredients and audit traceable actions.
• They can output printable food labels - legally compliant to Natasha's Law.
• They increase customer satisfaction - accurate allergen management can lead to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, as customers with allergies or intolerances will feel more confident and safe eating at the company's establishment.

Is making no decision regarding allergen management a good idea?

Making no decision regarding allergen management is not a good idea. It is important for any business that handles food to take responsibility for the safety of their customers, particularly those with food allergies or intolerances. Failure to properly manage allergens can have serious consequences for customers, including illness or even death, as well as legal consequences for the business. Therefore, it is crucial for companies to have a plan in place to manage allergen risks and to regularly review and update that plan as necessary. The use of software solutions can be an effective way to manage allergen risks and ensure compliance with relevant regulations.

What is Natasha's Law?

Natasha's Law is a new food labelling law in the UK that will require all pre-packaged foods to display a full list of ingredients on the label. The law is named after Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, a teenager who died in 2016 after suffering an allergic reaction to a sandwich that did not have adequate allergen labelling. The law came into effect on October 1st, 2021, and applies to all businesses that prepare and package food on-site for direct sale to consumers. The aim of the law is to provide greater protection to people with food allergies and intolerances by ensuring that they have clear information about the ingredients in the food they are buying.

What is the proposed Owen's Law?

Owen Carey was 18 years old in 2017 when he tragically died as a result of an anaphylactic reaction to food he had eaten. His family have launched a campaign to legally require restaurants to provide information about the top 14 allergens on the face of their menus. Find out more about Owen’s Law here: https://owens-law.co.uk/ Currently we are working with MPs, Catering organisations and other companies to implement the proposed Owens law in a practical and cost effective manner for the Caterer. Find out more information about the campaign here: https://www.controlcatering.com/save-lives.

Why systems save money and help the business to improve its bottom line?

• Proof with due diligence system - if things go wrong you are saving on legal costs.
• Cross check historical price of products against different suppliers.
• Exact costing on components and recipes - no guess work.
• Can see when prices need to be increased.
• Helps you stick to your HACCP plan for kitchen management keeping your 5 star food rating.
• Control of staff; the owner takes back control with internal training system and written work instructions.
• Systems permit repeatable and reliable training for new staff ensuring that information given out is accurate and up to date, or provided directly from the system.

What is the value Control Catering specifically brings?

It provides a tool that covers your company, should things go wrong, for a reasonable price.

• Control Catering is time and cost effective compared to the competition.
• Provides integration with websites and EPOS systems, making detailed recipe information available to customers.
• Framework for recording of due diligence i.e double-checking systems, avoiding cross-contamination and solving the big problem of alternative ingredients. The small caterer is more prone to give misinformation as they are less likely to have the systems in place to deal with allergen problems and people will sadly keep losing their lives or be very ill as a result. Control Catering solves these problems for everyone who is eating out in small independent establishments.
• Detailed user training video content is provided to allow staff to operate the system without the need for on-site trainers. If extra training or inputting of data is required, Control Catering can assist with a personalised solution to your business problem.
• Ultimately Control Catering will provide the tools to keep your business running within the realms of the law and keep you out of jail!

Why was Control Catering created?

Control Catering is about providing a solution to manage allergens for independent caterers to create recipes, incorporate them into bespoke menus and automatically manage and identify all possible allergens (not just the 14 legal), providing solutions for business owners including, cost controls and due diligence at affordable prices for independent establishments. Built by Caterers.

Who is a typical Control Catering customer?

All types of catering establishments, hotels, pubs, workplace canteens and small manufacturers.

Who does Control Catering work with?

We are not experts in every area so we have linked to the following companies to make Control Catering more efficient and accurate as possible:

• Erudus - API links bring your ingredient data from manufacturers direct into Control Catering.
• McCance & Widdowson's "composition of foods integrated dataset" (Control Catering is campaigning for improvements).
• Catering Suppliers - ask your supplier if they link to Control Catering.

Control Catering is free to use and test for 14 days with no credit card needed.

Contact us if you would like to arrange a no obligation demonstration.