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Food Hygiene Safety Signs & Posters

Need help? Need help? Stay safe and avoid dangerous cross-contamination Clear, UK-Approved Food Hygiene Safety Signs & Posters

The food industry is highly susceptible to the spread of bacterial and viral contaminants and food poisoning pathogens. Installing food hygiene safety signs & posters, from Seton, is a great way to help food businesses care for the welfare of their employees, but also to meet their legal obligations set by the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

Clearly mark washing facilities and dedicate food production areas, as well as provide instructions to food handlers with our range of UK-approved food hygiene safety signs & posters.
With a choice of style, size and material available, we’re sure to have what you need.

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How Does Cross-contamination Occur in the Food Industry?


The food business constitutes a multi-faceted industry ranging from processing and packaging plants to restaurants, hotels and street food carts. These markets all work with food in raw and prepared states.

Cross-contamination is the transfer of pathogen-carrying agents between people, surfaces, equipment and locations. In the food industry, cross-contamination is a leading cause of the spread of infections and food poisoning. Cross-contamination takes place when:

  • Raw foods or the juices from raw foods come into contact with prepared foods. This mainly refers to raw meat products and raw meat product juices. It often happens when raw meats and other foods are stored in the same refrigerator.

  • The same equipment is used for both raw and prepared foods and is not thoroughly cleaned in between uses. For example, using the same knife and cutting board to prepare raw meats and fresh produce promotes this type of cross-contamination.

  • Hands are not cleaned and kept clean. The importance of proper hand hygiene practices in food handlers cannot be overstated. Coronavirus hand hygiene guidelines reemphasised how easily hands pick up pathogens by touching foods and surfaces and how rapidly these pathogens are then spread.


Germs cling to surfaces, equipment, food products - raw and prepared alike - and the hands of food handlers. Food hygiene and safety practices are crucially important in the food industry. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) regulates food hygiene and safety in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and controls all food industry-related aspects, from registrations to labelling and applicable workplace signage.

Hand-washing Practices for Food Handlers


The Food Safety Authority of Ireland issued specifications on the hand-washing practices of food handlers. It is a fact that proper hand-washing habits in the food industry effectively prevent cross-contamination. The stated guidelines maintain that food handlers should thoroughly wash hands:

  • Upon arrival at work and again before handling any prepared foods.

  • Before and after working with and preparing raw foods, especially raw meat products.

  • After touching and handling any waste, cleaning activities, and using the bathroom facilities.

  • After touching the face – for instance, coughing or sneezing or rubbing the nose.

  • After having a meal, a drink, or smoking.

  • After touching money.

  • Before putting on gloves, in between changing gloves, and after disposing of gloves.


Gloves often make food handlers complacent. There is a misconception that wearing gloves replaces the need to frequently wash hands and that gloves present a barrier between pathogens on the hands and the food. The prolonged wearing of gloves actually increases the multiplication of pathogens on the hands. Gloves do not substitute proper hand-washing practices.

Your business should provide separate sinks for hand-washing and food-washing purposes. These separate sinks must be effectively located and easily accessible. Additionally, it is advisable to provide hand-washing sinks and facilities for food serving staff such as waiting and bar staff.

Correct Hand-washing Technique


Negligent hand washing is just as harmful as no hand washing. Professional guidelines state that hands should be wetted under warm running water, properly lathered with soap, and thoroughly washed – all surfaces, thumbs, and in between fingers – for at least 20 seconds. After washing, hands should be properly rinsed and dried.

Benefits of Food Hygiene Posters


Health and safety posters for kitchens are compulsory to ensure that constant food hygiene and safety practices are carried out. Proactive businesses not only recognise the importance of overall health and safety in the workplace, but also acknowledge the need to promote health and safety practices.

Food hygiene signage serves to constantly remind and inform employees and food handlers of the importance of food hygiene and safety. Food hygiene signs should be:

  • Highly visible.

  • Clearly illustrate the intended message.

  • Contain key phrases (if necessary) that are easy to read and interpret.


Experts maintain that well-placed and well-displayed signage and posters benefit a business on different levels. Food safety and hygiene posters:

  • Enhance and promote food hygiene and safety awareness among employees and food handlers. The constant visual reminders cultivate habits of handwashing and other hygienic food handling practices.

  • Communicate a company’s commitment to food hygiene and safety. Displaying a kitchen hygiene poster, for instance, lets food handlers and kitchen employees know that the company is serious about its food hygiene practices and that negligence will not be tolerated. It also sends a message to customers and patrons by advocating the standards and practices of the establishment.

  • Get the message across – quickly and effectively. A food hygiene and safety poster on hand washing, for example, encapsulates the message of how important handwashing is in the kitchen in one simple visual image.


In today’s climate of heightened consciousness about hygiene, communicating your company’s intent and purposes on the issue is crucial. Seton offers you and your business a wide selection of food hygiene safety signs and posters to choose from.