Writer: Kay Ledbetter, 806-677-5608, skledbetter@ag.tamu.edu
Contact: Joan Gray-Soria, 806-669-8033, Joan.Gray-Soria@ag.tamu.edu
PAMPA – A professional food manager certification training course, “Food Safety: It’s Our Business,” will be offered Oct. 17-18 by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in Gray County.
The meeting will be at the Gray County Annex, 12125 E. Frederic Ave., Pampa. The fee will be $125, and preregistration is due Oct. 12. To register for the course, call 806-669-8033. The fee includes training, materials and a national food manager certification examination.
Under the Texas Department of State Health Services jurisdiction, each food establishment is required to have one certified food manager on staff. A food manager’s certification is valid anywhere in Texas for five years.
This program is designed to prepare foodservice managers to pass the certification examination and provide valuable education regarding the safe handling of food, said Joan Gray-Soria, AgriLife Extension family and community health agent in Gray County.
Statistics indicate that foodborne illnesses continue to be a health issue in the U.S., Gray-Soria said. Each year, one in six Americans will become sick, 128,000 will become hospitalized and 3,000 will die due to a foodborne illness.
By attending the course, foodservice managers will learn about: identifying potentially hazardous foods and common errors in food handling; preventing contamination and cross-contamination of food; teaching and encouraging personal hygiene for employees; complying with government regulations; maintaining clean utensils, equipment and surroundings; and controlling pests.
For more information about the course, call Gray-Soria at 806-669-8033.
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