British Sandwich & Food to Go Association Issues New Guidelines
Following new guidelines shared by the British Sandwich & Food to Go Association (BSA) regarding ready-to-eat chilled foods in healthcare settings, it is more important than ever to ensure rigid temperature control.
The new guidelines will come into effect on 6th October 2025, and will focus on minimising the risk of bacterial growth in the hot environments common across healthcare settings by setting a maximum of 3 day-day shelf-life and restricting some ingredients used.
In particular, the guidelines aim to prevent the risks from Listeria Monocytogenes (LM), which Jim Winship, BSA Director explains:
“While in most cases bacteria such as Lister Monocytogenes do not represent a danger to public health, they can present a risk to vulnerable patients in high-risk categories, including pregnant women, newborn babies, those aged over 80 and those with supressed immune systems.
This risk is accentuated by the high temperatures in hospitals and other healthcare settings, as well as the time it can take for products to be delivered around wards.”
The guidelines will apply to both patient catering and visitor retail outlets. Although there are rules against visitors bringing in food for patients, it is recognised that these are sometimes disregarded – therefore the inclusion of guest-focused eateries helps further minimise risk.
Some of the restricted ingredients include foods that are more susceptible to LM, including:
- Raw onions, spring onions, and chives
- Fermented meats: chorizo and salami
- Cold smoked salmon
- Cooked shellfish
- Soft, mould-ripened, and veined cheeses
- Pate
To discourage consumers – particularly patients – from leaving uneaten food in warm environments to return to later, the new guidelines also mandate clear storage temperature labelling and product shelf life.
While healthcare caterers cannot enforce these recommendations once the chilled meals have been given to consumers, they should be mindful of their role in the delivery, storage, and distribution stage of these food products.
The BSA notes that manufactures must ensure that sandwiches and chilled foods are delivered to outlets at a maintained temperature of 5oC or below, and must be able to support this through data loggers. To provide additional assurance, caterers should check the temperature of deliveries before accepting them, as they assume immediate responsibility afterwards. Monika’s wireless handheld temperature probes can enable operators to do this quickly and efficiently without disrupting business. The data is automatically logged to Monika’s smart cloud-connected dashboard, providing a clear starting point for chefs to track the chilled food.
Once operators have confirmed the products are not damaged and have been delivered in within the correct temperature range, they must ensure food is stored at or below 5oC until they are made available for purchase, at which point they must not exceed 8oC. No matter how consistent operators are with manual temperature checks, this method still leaves room for errors to occur and food to become compromised. Healthcare caterers should consider an automated temperature monitoring solution to help them adhere to these new regulations.
Monika’s discreet in-unit sensors cleverly simulate the temperature of perishable food items, rather than simply recording the air inside the unit, for greater accuracy. Operators can set a predetermined safe temperature range, and should a unit move outside this range Monika’s system sends an audible and visual alert to enable staff to take corrective action and relocate stock before it spoils. Not only does this help healthcare operators remain compliant with new guidelines, but it can also save caterers money in terms of energy efficiency costs and eliminating unnecessary food wastage.
Finally, Monika’s versatile applications can also be used at ward-level and across medical settings, including medicine storage, so healthcare organisations can keep all their compliance management under one convenient system.
To learn more about how Monika can help meet your specific requirements book a commitment free demo, head to our contact page to fill out an enquiry, or phone us on 01664 420 022.
For further information about the new guidelines, please contact the British Sandwich & Food to Go Association on 01291 636 338.