Everyone Needs a Crisis Management Plan

In a perfect world we would not have to worry about food safety, but between employee turnover, lack of training, contaminated product, ailing equipment and more, no one has a perfect world in their establishment. So like the Scouts you need to be prepared, no matter how large or small your operation, to handle a crisis related to possible foodborne illness outbreak.

We all know bad things happen to good foodservice operations and despite top efforts an outbreak of foodborne illness can occur. Here are 12 steps that can get you started in developing a plan of action for your establishment.

• Assemble a team. In a small restaurant this might be the owner and chef, but two heads are better than one.
• Put together a list of emergency names and contact numbers and post it by the phone. This should include team members, the health department, inspectors, fire department or any other agencies you feel might be involved in investigating an outbreak. Clearly identify who the official spokesperson will be.
• Develop a step-by-step plan of action.
  • Fill out a foodborne illness report form when a customer calls with a complaint.
  • Isolate the suspect food.
  • Save samples of the food for laboratory testing.
  • Prevent anymore of the suspect food from being sold.
  • Prevent suspect employees from handling the food.
  • Contact team members.
  • Contact your local health department or inspector.
• Decide beforehand:
  • Who will take charge of managing the crisis?
  • Who should be told about the crisis?
  • Who will your official spokesperson be?
• Develop a list of questions and answers for the media.
• Write a sample press release. Have a hard copy and a computer disk in your crisis kit.
• Assemble a list of local media contacts to call for a press conference or briefing only if it becomes necessary, i.e., you're getting calls from the media and they need answers!
• Develop a list of do's and don'ts on dealing with the media.
• Be sure your spokesperson is truthful and professional when communicating with the media.
• Include instructions on communicating with your employees. Provide them with information on their role in the situation and dealing with the media.
• Assemble all information in a notebook and keep it in a location for ease of use.
• Test out the plan by running a simulation.

While this is clearly more work on your part, in the long run if you would have a foodborne illness outbreak in your operation this plan could be the difference between staying in business or going under!

Source: Food Safety Illustrated, vol.1, issue 1/Winter 2001