Fast food nation: the dark side of the all-American meal

If there is one comment I would like to make right at the get go, based on my reading of the book "Fast Food Nation", it would be that Eric Schlosser's commentary was boring but in the ultimate analysis a revelation to consumers like me, who blindly indulge in fast food without even inkling as to what lies beneath the surface. Indeed what troubled me most was not the fact that fast food is a ubiquitous servant, available anywhere and everywhere, but that the parts used in the making of the hamburgers came from worn out dairy cows, which can technically contain parts of a large number of cows thereby increasing the probability that pathogens might trigger off an outbreak of food borne illnesses. (Eric, 3-4)

Finally in a chilling reminder that packaging and taste go a long way in hooking young kids into the habit, was the reality that the fast food industry was dependent on the services of the billion dollar flavor industry, which manufacture and sell the complex chemicals that give distinctive flavors to processed foods such as "smoky" chicken, "strawberry" shakes and even "flame-broiled" burgers. With such a plethora of artificial and natural flavor's used to mask questionable food products and producers, I as a Catering Technology student was faced with a question, of how as a catering manager in an operation, I could put policies in place to ensure or at least minimize the risks in purchasing food from the market place.?

Policy Promulgation

To ensure the success of any restaurant, the maintenance of quality control is of primary importance. As a responsible manager of a catering operation I will ensure that a three pronged policy protocol is in place to ensure safety right from the producers/suppliers I deal with, procedural specifications regarding how the purchases {meat, seafood, dry goods and fresh produce} are checked, verified and accepted at receiving, and finally the hygiene/sanitation & line cooking policies to ensure that the finished product that reaches the consumer is free of food outbreak causing pathogens. (Eric, 3-4)

Policy 1 Operational Policy and policy as regards producers & suppliers

A) Ensuring HACCP safety standards are followed at the establishment.

"HACCP is a science-based, systematic tool that focuses on preventing problems before they occur, rather than trying to detect failures through end-product testing. It is designed to evaluate and monitor processes to ensure that biological, chemical and physical hazards are reduced, prevented or eliminated. During the development of a HACCP system, potential hazards are identified and control measures are implemented at specific points in the manufacturing process" . By ensuring that the HACCP system is in place, the catering operations will be able to reduce risk, improve product quality & consistency and reduce cost of processing/product waste. (Eric, 3-4)

B) Ensuring that the supplier is registered with the Better Business Bureau or the Registry of Joint Stock Companies in Nova Scotia.

Dealing with companies that are well established {preferably 5- 10 years} and registered with ...