Safe storage of dry goods has many aspects, from keeping food items pest and vermin free to ensuring that you have enough space to get at what you need and that products are not going to end up falling on your head.
The storage of dry goods is often overlooked in regulations, apart from in relation to maintaining food safety, but the actual idea of safe storage in itself is actually important. Add to this the need to keep dried foods safe, nutritious and wholesome and it seems more important than ever to think about the issue properly.
Thankfully, safe storage is actually pretty easy, as long as you consider the following:
– Stock rotation
– Cooler is best
– Dry is best
– Size matters
– Keep sunshine out
– Separate
– Keep pests away
Food rotation is vital and so make sure you date containers and packages and make sure that you follow the FIFO ideal of first in, first out. If investing in commercial or residential shelving Ireland or England has companies who can make this process easy.
Storerooms should be kept cool and dry, with temperatures from 50°F to 70°F. The cooler, the better. Storage times can reduce by each extra 18°F (10°C) of heat. Humidity should also be no more than 15 percent. Read more about safe storage at http://www.hse.gov.uk/pUbns/priced/hsg76.pdf.
Keep food items away from direct sunlight as this will cause products to lose quality and nutritional value. Artificial illumination is a much better choice than sunlight to avoid oxidation.
Invest in storage solutions from the likes of https://www.rackzone.ie/shelving/industrial-residential-shelving/ and make sure that dry foods are kept a minimum of six inches above the floor and a minimum of 18 inches from outer walls.
Another consideration is the size of your storeroom or storage area. In general, this space needs to be bigger than ever before. This is because of societal changes where bulk purchasing is the norm and as a result of changes to the volume of portions.
Adequate shelving and storage space can make keeping dried foods safe as easily as possible. Enough space will ensure that products do not get ‘lost’ and help to make the environment as safe as possible for people looking to access the goods. Some dried goods packages and containers can be very heavy, making it important to avoid accidents.
