Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has recently launched an advanced online allergen training platform to aid food businesses. This online tool has been designed to offer better understanding of food hypersensitivities to staff and support businesses to comply with legal requirements for providing ingredient and allergen information to consumers. The platform was previously developed by Greater Gwent Food Group, the Food Standards Agency and Trading Standards Wales, and has been adapted by FSS for use.
The training covers five sections through videos; explaining food allergies, regulations, providing allergen information, managing allergens, and the responsibilities of a food business. This launch comes after nationwide campaigns, including Coeliac UK Awareness Week and Allergy Awareness Week.
Abigail Purkis, Enforcement Delivery Project Manager with FSS said: “This advanced allergen training builds on our existing FSS Online Allergy Training by providing food businesses with a more detailed and in-depth look into allergen management within catering environments. Due to the severity of the risks associated with food allergies, non-compliance with allergen management can have serious and sometimes fatal consequences. It is therefore extremely important that food businesses and their staff understand how to manage allergens within their business.”
The training tool is interactive and easily-digestible, with a presenter that guides the user through each section in video format. One can pause and resume the training at any time.
This platform is free and can be accessed through the FSS website. Completion of all sections leads to the user receiving a validated Certificate of Achievement by FSS, provided they achieve a pass mark of 80% or higher in the final quiz, which can be added to their training records. The training can be completed within two hours and has been formulated to help businesses ensure their customers’ safety regarding food allergies and intolerances.
It is a boon for food organizations that the FSS has launched this advanced platform to provide in-depth training about allergen management within catering environments. Hurry and visit the FSS website to access this free training tool and achieve an 80% or higher in the final quiz to receive a Certificate of Achievement.