Food Service Gloves, Disposable Food Handling Gloves

Disposable Food Service Gloves

• All About Food Service Gloves
• FDA Code and Food Service Gloves
• Cross Contamination and Food Gloves
• Food Gloves and Typhoid Mary
• Hygiene Tips for Food Service Gloves
• Earth-Friendly Hybrid Food Gloves

Amid its diverse role, the Food and Drug Administration, an agency of the USDA, oversees the regulation of food service as well as food content and packaging in this country. Starting in 1993, the agency first published its Food Code, revising it ever since at regular intervals to help improve food safeguards for public health. The FDA Food Code is a model upon which all other governments’ (state, county, municipal) food service regulations are based.

In its 2005 Food Code, the FDA specifically addressed the issue of retail food handling that was in the final stages of preparation and serving: "Food employees shall minimize bare hand and arm contact with non-prepackaged food that is in a ready to eat form." This means that the use of clean utensils and food service gloves should be the only means of contact with ready-to-serve food.

Because most of the FDA Food Code currently serves as a voluntary standard for states’ own food service lawmaking, the mandatory use of food service gloves varies from place to place in the country. For example, California’s retail food service industry employees must be vigilant with glove use whereas South Carolina legally leaves the glove practice as a matter of business choice, emphasizing hand washing hygiene.

However, the use of these protective gloves is seen as good for business by many in the non-mandated regions. Customers remember when and where they see food employees properly using the gear. Simply put, food service gloves are good for business.