From eradicating roaming rodents, cockroaches and bed bugs

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1 Keeping the nasties at bay, and far away Writer Sue Fea examines one of the less pleasant sides of running a hospitality venue, and what you can do to be prepared for the worst From eradicating roaming rodents, cockroaches and bed bugs that come creeping in the night to high-tech food safety hygiene, hospitality operators are becoming increasingly distracted from their core business. They know that one slip up in the food and hygiene arena is all it takes to land them a bad report on Trip Advisor, but it all costs time and money. Since the new Food Act 2014 became law in March, industry specialists report a rush of operators keen to explore time and labour saving devices to help them keep in step with the new regulations. They re also after customer-friendly pest control practises that don t hurt their bottom line. There s been plenty of warning and time for the food industry to prepare and be eased into the more stringent Food Act, which applies to all new food businesses from March, However, existing food businesses have until February 2019 to comply. By then food control plans already in place in most restaurants and cafes - will be the norm. > Hospitality BUSINESS August

2 USING THE RIGHT TOOLS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE For Eurotec, the leading New Zealand distributors of the latest in Testo food technology tools, the new law has produced a rush of new business from the hospitality and food industries. Eurotec s Testo range of sophisticated easy-to-use food safety technology and tools have become intensely popular this year, says instrument and measurement business development manager Tom Aldridge. It was very evident at the recent Fine Food Show what a huge increase in demand there has been for efficient, time-saving equipment and systems to help time poor businesses to comply with the new Act, says Tom. One of their biggest breakthroughs is the Testo Saveris 2, which ensures the quality of your food with simple and efficient monitoring and documentation of all refrigerated and heated foods. Continuous, accurate and efficient data monitoring has become a mainstream requirement and especially nowadays with the advent of the new safety act. Testo s range of data monitoring and data logging systems are designed to ensure all these needs are met to the utmost efficiency, allowing accurate measurements and access to data via a multitude of options. The HACCP International Approved Testo Saveris 2 system enables users to log temperature and humidity levels easily, anytime and anywhere, without compromising security, or creating bother with time consuming software. All you need is an internet connection, wireless LAN and Web browser. The Testo Saveris 2 WiFi data loggers reliably record temperature and humidity at defined intervals, and transmit the measurement values directly by WiFi to the Testo Cloud. The dataprotected and secure measurement values stored in the Cloud can be evaluated anywhere and anytime using an internet capable Smartphone, tablet or PC. When limit value violations occur, predefined users will receive and txt alerts to devices immediately. 38 August 2016 Hospitality BUSINESS

3 QUALITY AS ALWAYS, IS BEST Some operators opt for cheap thermometers made in China, he says, but Testo s German-made range is endorsed by HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points) International. HACCP operates a world-renowned product certification scheme and has put safe procedures in place for businesses to follow. Testo offers a wide range of HACCP instruments for measuring food safety. With the cheaper replicas you have no way of knowing if they ll measure up to New Zealand standards, but our equipment is all certified and fully traceable, says Tom. Under the new Food Act businesses can be audited by local authorities and any equipment used must have a calibration certificate. If the equipment you re using is not certified you can be caught out during the audit. With tighter regulations on inward control points for goods it s vital that temperatures are checked and logged accurately with certified instruments. If goods are chilled or frozen, and you accept them on delivery, you re then liable if anyone gets ill, so the equipment you re using needs to be extremely accurate, says Tom. Everything from temperature to ph-level checks are crucial to ensure customers don t get ill and our hand-held instruments now offer that traceability. While insertion probes check the core temperatures of the likes of pies or meat, infra-red guns measure the outside surface of the food to ensure it s not too hot. Our ph technology also works for measuring the acidity in the likes of sushi, says Tom. ph is the only control available for measuring the safety of sushi. Rice can be more deadly, attracting more pathogens than the fillings. Rice, raw seafood and chicken sitting in ambient conditions will attract pathogens and your only protection is the acid in the rice vinegar, which can last a number of hours. > Customers are demanding environmentally-friendly options with increasing evidence that chemical sprays cause ill health Hospitality BUSINESS August

4 THE NEVER-ENDING WAR AGAINST PESTS One foot wrong can be extremely harmful to any hospitality or food business, as former long-time 5-star hotel manager Heiko Kaiser, of Alpeco, warns. The German-born manager was so concerned about the harmful effects of using chemical pest control measures here in New Zealand, that he flew back to Germany to investigate the latest in chemical-free eradication methods. I ended up taking a year off and flying all over the world to investigate this issue as I discovered how dangerous the chemicals in pest eradication sprays and rodent poisons were to human health, says Heiko. Out of those investigations his thriving new company, Alpeco now the leading chemical-free pest eradication company in New Zealand was born. The two key weapons in Heiko s armour are the Swedish-produced Cryonite a freeze technology widely used in Europe to eradicate bed bugs and the German-produced, Thermo Bug. Heiko worked with these leading international companies to develop new technology that combines the two methods of destroying insects heat and freezing - with a newly-designed technology. I said let s bring the two main methods together to make a more effective product. I m now in partnership with Thermo Bug producing a much more effective product that s used around the world. > I ended up taking a year off and flying all over the world to investigate this issue as I discovered how dangerous the chemicals in pest eradication sprays and rodent poisons were to human health. Heiko Kaiser, Alpeco Hospitality BUSINESS August

5 Cryonite an environmentally-friendly effective treatment for killing insects - uses recycled carbon dioxide. It a safe and effective way to kill insects, which cannot live beyond 55degC heat or minus 20degC. We either heat up the room to that temperature or freeze the surfaces with a dry ice. There s no damage, no odour and no harm to your guests or staff, says Heiko. The turnover is fast and the room back in business in little time. It s having great success everywhere from food processing areas like bakeries to backpackers lodges and hotel rooms. The dead insects are sucked up and no residual is left. Cryonite is also brilliant for cleaning coffee machines. Bed bugs may be tiny but they pack a mean bite and Heiko warns they re sure to send customers packing their bags, never to return. They re just as happy nestled in high-end accommodation as they are in a backpackers lodge. Unfortunately for Heiko, he witnessed this first-hand while working in New Zealand some years ago. Bed bugs are harmful. They can bite you up to 500 times and your whole body can be covered. Heiko had good friends staying in the hotel on their honeymoon and the bride was bitten. I was shocked, because I didn t know what I was dealing with, he says. My housekeeper wanted to resign and all the staff were embarrassed. It was awful. Bed bugs are a nightmare for hotel managers and they need to be properly managed, as they multiply very quickly. It s a big issue when someone is staying in a hotel room and there s even only one bug, as it can bite multiple times. He s had customers reduced to tears after repeatedly trying to bomb these wretched pests with chemical eradication. They ve often tried and tried and spent hundreds of dollars, but these insects just become resistant to the chemicals and the problem gets worse, says Heiko. Bed bugs start crawling away from chemically-infested areas, up curtains, or under beds, and infest a new Global experts in food safety and quality area, he says. Heiko s seen whole floors of hotels and holiday apartments infested with bed bugs, and says most people would be disturbed if they saw what he s seen. They can leave a chemical area and hide for up to a year, returning once the chemicals have been broken down, he says. AND LET S NOT FORGET THE END USER Not only have housekeeping standards slipped as many operators strive to cut costs and corners, but younger staff, and often those from other cultures, don t know how to clean to a high enough standard, Heiko believes. When it comes to hygiene it s most important to vacuum thoroughly under beds and lift mattresses. Take the top off the vacuum cleaner and get down on your knees under furniture and beds. This is just basic hygiene and can help prevent infestation. Customers are demanding environmentally-friendly options with increasing evidence that chemical sprays cause ill health, he says. Europe is way ahead of us. So many people are sick because they re using dispensers that propel chemical repellents into the air to kill flies. Then people wonder why they have headaches and their children can t concentrate. How can you put a guest in a room when you know it s just been sprayed and treated for pest control? Alpeco also holds exclusive rights to emitter and NARA Lure rodent trapping in New Zealand. NARA Lure has scored the company a European Best Product award for its eco-friendly and efficient method of catching and instantly killing rodents. This technology has been developed in partnership with Alpeco s German partners incorporating a software application that monitors premises 24 hours a day for rodents. Called emitter, it s the only system of its kind in the world, that doesn t use any poisons. With traditional rat poisons rodents continue to run around until they die leaving toxic green droppings everywhere. We find them in spice containers and among the plates on shelves, says Heiko. BRC insect light traps also use UV light to attract pesky flies, moths and mosquitos by luring them in then trapping them in a glue board. We don t just spray and walk away to treat the problem, but offer advice and education to clients so they can take care of the problem themselves. Independent quality assurance services you can trust. Industry Training Auditing & Inspection Services Laboratory Testing Talk to us today to see how we can add value to your business Eurotec is offering some great new food safety tools 42 August 2016 Hospitality BUSINESS