Fun activities to reinforce learning - food safety and sanitation

Looking for ideas for fun activities to reinforce learning on food safety and sanitation.

Dear S. Davies,

Here are some ideas to give another dimension to your training activities. I don't know if it's really funny. I think, that when there is a nice ambiance and when there is room for discussion and people are heared*** it will be nice anyhow.

*** Heared - And their remarks are taken seriously and changed into improvement actions

- Go to the place of the concerning topic, show and explain how it should be ideally leaving room for people to give their input (For example for cleaning, hand washing, bag opening, knife policy etc.)

- Revealing invisible dirtiness (For example with UV light, plate counts (for hands and surfaces) or with a good flashlight)

I hope the above gave you some ideas.

Kind regards,

Gerard Heerkens

Last "training" we did with the staff was very simple, a quiz with approx 20 questions relating to our factory   This was the finale during the last personnel gathering before the summer holidays were about to start.

I'd rather have it just after the vacations, before a new season starts (as a reminder/re-fresh course) but there's no time for it then so I had to make due with that solution.

I made it as one of three different suggestions was the correct answer, so basically there was a guessing game.

For example:

Yearly energy and water consumption?

How many hygiene zones we have?

What bacteria needs to grow?

What our products are called in Latin?

Which certificates do we have?

Which are the test cards used for the metal detector?

etc.

Also, there was a small "bribe" for the person with most correct answers, a box with candy.

I found the staff wasn't as unwilling when you made it into a competition (with a prize at the end). 

Something we just started doing for our basic sanitation training was setting up one room as a sanitation "crime scene" with a number of different sanitation issues - they employees were brought in and given five minutes to find as many issues as possible.  A friend of mine is a police office, so we were able to get a roll of 'crime scene' tape to block off the area.

We try to keep our training topics to 20  minutes or less.  We usually have a short quiz after each section - I will add in answers to the questions that can be considered 'humerous' but usually get a reaction out of the employees and gets them talking about what we just learned.  

For example, when we had the training on etiquette for an audit, this was the question and the answers I listed: 

There's a fun handwashing exercise you can do with invisible gel that glows under black light.  It's a great way to break up boring training and get the participants talking. 

Apply the gel to the trainees hands then have them wash their hands, then examine their hands afterwards, you can see all the places they have missed. 

Similar products can be used to create invisible trails of "contamination".

We use http://www.servesafe.../glitterbug.htm  - not sure if you can get it in your country but I'm sure there are similar products out there.

Yes,

 We will be in a conference room so will not be doing that but we will use the glow germ powder and UV light for some other exercises. I love the exercise to enforce hand washing!!!

We will be in a conference room. Trying for break outs where we get them moving in these 'fun' activities. 

Thanks so much. 

There's a fun handwashing exercise you can do with invisible gel that glows under black light.  It's a great way to break up boring training and get the participants talking. 

 

Apply the gel to the trainees hands then have them wash their hands, then examine their hands afterwards, you can see all the places they have missed. 

 

Similar products can be used to create invisible trails of "contamination".

 

We use http://www.servesafe.../glitterbug.htm  - not sure if you can get it in your country but I'm sure there are similar products out there.

We are including a Quiz for understanding so I think adding fun questions will be wonderful :)  Even if we just get the chuckle and participants do not understand. 

 

We try to keep our training topics to 20  minutes or less.  We usually have a short quiz after each section - I will add in answers to the questions that can be considered 'humerous' but usually get a reaction out of the employees and gets them talking about what we just learned.  

 

For example, when we had the training on etiquette for an audit, this was the question and the answers I listed: 

 

If an inspector asks me a question, and I don't know the answer I should:

a) Make up an answer so I don't look stupid

b) Politely tell him I don't know and let my manager answer

c) Tell him to stop asking such hard questions because he's making me nervous

 

Choices A and C are things that probably cross everyone's minds when they are being asked questions - so we all had a good conversation about what goes through your mind is one thing, what you say is actually something else. 

 

Some thoughts we had so far in case you have to do something similar - 

1. our sr director is dressing up like a cockroach

2. We have prizes - bacteria toys for our EMP discussions

3. We are having the people be in teams and the 1st and 2nd place win a prize. Based on participation, quiz and the 'fun creative' presentation at the end to enforce learning. 

4. AIB and FDA hats

5. Have an area (kind of like the crime scene idea) with EMP type areas (drains, conveyors....) and use glow germ powder and see if they go beyond the obvious for finding areas to swab. They learn swabbing and 'seek to find'mentality.

6. we were going to do a 'where's Waldo' type of exercise but i love the crime scene idea. 

We have a month so we are still coming up with ideas. 

Sarah

Thanks to everyone for your ideas!!  They are so appreciated. It is hard to make things relevant, and fun while still learning. We do not want to have people come to  conference and it just be a power point presentation....boring time. 

sarah

Some thoughts we had so far in case you have to do something similar - 

 

1. our sr director is dressing up like a cockroach

2. We have prizes - bacteria toys for our EMP discussions

3. We are having the people be in teams and the 1st and 2nd place win a prize. Based on participation, quiz and the 'fun creative' presentation at the end to enforce learning. 

4. AIB and FDA hats

5. Have an area (kind of like the crime scene idea) with EMP type areas (drains, conveyors....) and use glow germ powder and see if they go beyond the obvious for finding areas to swab. They learn swabbing and 'seek to find'mentality.

6. we were going to do a 'where's Waldo' type of exercise but i love the crime scene idea. 

 

We have a month so we are still coming up with ideas. 

Sarah

Can you possibly share some of your Where's Waldo game?

I have been searching for what seems like forever for some "Food Safe Friday" activities and am not very successful

Last "training" we did with the staff was very simple, a quiz with approx 20 questions relating to our factory   This was the finale during the last personnel gathering before the summer holidays were about to start.

I'd rather have it just after the vacations, before a new season starts (as a reminder/re-fresh course) but there's no time for it then so I had to make due with that solution.

 

I made it as one of three different suggestions was the correct answer, so basically there was a guessing game.

For example:

Yearly energy and water consumption?

How many hygiene zones we have?

What bacteria needs to grow?

What our products are called in Latin?

Which certificates do we have?

Which are the test cards used for the metal detector?

etc.

 

Also, there was a small "bribe" for the person with most correct answers, a box with candy.

I found the staff wasn't as unwilling when you made it into a competition (with a prize at the end). 

Can I ask why you made it a guessing game?