HOTELIERS and restaurateurs are being urged to prepare their staff for new food safety laws.

The legislation is due to come into force later this year and will require all staff handling food to have achieved a required standard of training. Jersey is currently lagging behind the rest of Europe and is said to be the only jurisidiction to be without these legal requirements.

Although the effect on the hospitality industry is unlikely to take effect immediately, training specialists say that demands will inevitably increase, both from legislators and members of the public. Two organisations are now offering training which will satisfy the new laws.

The Jersey Hospitality Association has updated its programme with three new courses: the Royal Society for Public Health level 2 award in food safety in catering, the RSPH level 2 award in health and safety in the workplace, and the Welcome Host Plus advanced level customer care course, which all build on the level one courses that have been running in previous years.

Training company Law at Work is offering its CookSafe programme in conjunction with Highlands College, based on the principles of the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points system. The training is presented by Environmental Health Officers and takes six hours to complete.

Pictured: A trainee chef at Highlands College restaurant