Safe Food Handling

To ensure food safety at Svenska Mässan Gothia Towers AB, we have developed the following guidelines for exhibitors at fairs and congresses.
If you, as an exhibitor, plan to offer food in your stand that is not delivered by Svenska Mässan Gothia Towers AB, the following criteria must be met:

  • All food service must be approved by Svenska Mässan Gothia Towers AB at least two weeks before the event.
  • The exhibitor must ensure that the service meets the requirements of Swedish legislation regarding food safety.

Sales of Food and Tasting

No sale of food on the exhibition floor or in connection with the congress may take place without approval.

– Food that can be taken home in sealed consumer packaging is allowed to be sold on the exhibition floor by exhibitors. This food can be part of a dish prepared at home, such as sausages, smoked products, dry pasta, olive oil, or Parmesan cheese – all sealed.
– The food must be intended for further processing at home.
– It is not allowed to sell products that require “direct consumption” on the exhibition floor, such as pizza slices, scooped ice cream, or popcorn in cups. However, exhibitors are allowed to offer food, provided they follow the Safe Food Handling routine.
– If you plan to offer food tasting, the samples must be consumable in a maximum of two bites. Tastings must be reported at least two weeks before the event.
– All information must be sent in a single email to your contact person at Svenska Mässan Gothia Towers.

To obtain approval, the following information must be attached:

  • A copy of the permit to handle food issued by the environmental administration in the delivering company’s home municipality.
  • A copy of the protocol of an approved food inspection within the last 12 months.
  • Name, phone number, and email of the contact person on site in the stand.
  • Specify which fair/congress will be attended and the stand number where the service will take place.

    All information must be sent in a single email to your contact person at Svenska Mässan Gothia Towers.

Disposable Materials

A new law concerning disposable materials took effect on January 1, 2024. Make sure to update yourself on what applies to your intended service.

– Using materials for a short time and then throwing them away is not sustainable. Disposable products have various impacts on the environment – they consume resources and often end up in nature, leading to littering. Using reusable alternatives significantly reduces resource consumption and helps reduce littering.
– Disposable items are a major source of litter. Since plastic is difficult to break down in nature, many birds and mammals are harmed by getting caught in plastic or eating it.
– Due to the long degradation time, plastic is a growing environmental problem, and reducing the use of disposable items is a measure to reduce the risk of plastic ending up in nature.
– Disposable items also consume resources. Even if the product is recycled, energy and material values are lost. Therefore, the best option is to use the product multiple times. This way, we save on the earth’s resources and energy.

Read about the current legislation at www.naturvardsverket.se

 

Control

Staff from Svenska Mässan Gothia Towers AB will conduct unannounced inspections to ensure compliance with Swedish legislation regarding food safety.

The following will be inspected:

  • Design and condition of the place: sufficient work surfaces, floors, walls, storage spaces, equipment, possibility of separation, etc.
  • Handwashing facilities, personal hygiene, and work clothes.
  • Ongoing food handling.
  • Temperature control: refrigeration & freezing, hot holding, cooking, etc.
  • Cleaning.
  • Knowledge, routines, self-monitoring, thermometers.
  • Waste, garbage, pests.
  • That the business is registered as a food establishment and that the business complies with the information on the registration decision.
  • That the business has the conditions to serve “safe food.”

If the inspection does not meet the food safety requirements, the representative of Svenska Mässan Gothia Towers AB has the right to immediately stop the service. The permit will then be revoked, and the service may not continue for the remainder of the event.

Considerations for Food Preparation and Serving

– Since the location is not equipped in the same way as a regular kitchen, preparations, storage, and post-processing often need to be done in another location, a so-called base location. The base location can, for example, be an approved or registered restaurant/large kitchen.
– All food to be served on-site should be prepared in the base location or purchased prepared from a supplier. On-site, only final preparation, heat treatment, and plating should take place.
– Handling raw meat, poultry, and fish is not suitable on-site as this space is often not designed for such handling. Handling raw meat increases the risk of cross-contamination and places significantly higher demands on the design of the space.
– Salads and vegetables should be delivered washed and chopped.
– Handwashing facilities with running cold and hot water, liquid soap, and disposable towels should be available near the handling area.
– Access to running hot water should be available for washing and cleaning.
– Refrigerated goods should be stored so that their temperature does not exceed the temperature indicated on the packaging, often +8ºC, and frozen goods colder than -18ºC.
– Cooling wells should be available for accompaniments to langos, pizza, salads, or similar.
– If food rinsing occurs, there should be a sink with running water for this purpose.
– Prepared hot food should be stored so that the temperature in the food does not fall below +60 degrees. Hot holding should not last more than 2 hours, including transport time. Hot holding equipment should be available for food that is kept warm.
– Refrigerators and freezers should be equipped with thermometers. A thermometer should also be available for measuring food that is kept warm or cooked, preferably a probe thermometer.
– Food should be handled so that it is not contaminated or made harmful, e.g., different types of food should be stored well separated and covered.
– Floor/ground storage is not allowed.
– There should be a barrier against other customers and the surroundings to prevent contamination of the food.
– Sales counters, other furnishings, and equipment should be made of materials and designed in a way that makes them easy to clean.
– Staff handling food must wear appropriate protective clothing.
– A sufficient number of garbage bins/bags should be available near the serving and sales area.
– A self-monitoring system should be in place. The business must be able to explain how it ensures handling and food safety at all stages. This includes which checks are performed, any corrective actions taken, and the results of the self-monitoring.

Self-Monitoring

You, as a food producer, must be able to explain how your business ensures handling on-site. This can be done using a self-monitoring system. The system should include routines for critical handling moments and other important processes in the business.
The routines should ensure that all food is handled safely, thereby avoiding any foodborne illnesses. Everyone working with food in your business should be aware of and follow these routines. You are responsible for ensuring that the routines are checked and, in some cases, documented during the ongoing fair/congress.

Knowledge/Training

Everyone working with food should have sufficient knowledge of food hygiene and be familiar with the business’s routines. The person responsible for the business should ensure that the staff receives adequate instructions/training and checks that the staff follows the routines.
The goal is for all staff working with food to understand and know how to work to serve safe food.

Personal Hygiene

Everyone working with food should be aware of the routines for work clothes, hand hygiene, staff toilets, and infection control.
The goal of the routine is to prevent staff from transferring harmful pathogens to food.

Cleaning

Your business should have a routine that ensures cleaning is done frequently enough and that all staff understands the importance of cleaning. The goal of the routine is to ensure that cleaning is done in such a way that all handled food remains safe.

Temperature Control of Food Upon Arrival

Your business should have some form of routine to ensure that food, raw materials, and goods are checked when they are received at the sales location. You need to know the applicable temperatures and what to do with the food if the temperature is too high for refrigerated goods or too low for hot-held food.
The goal is to ensure that only safe food is received and used.

Temperature in Refrigerators and Freezers

Your business should have routines to ensure that the temperature in refrigerators and freezers is monitored. Everyone working with food should understand why it is important to store food at appropriate and sufficiently low storage temperatures.
The goal of the routine is to ensure that all food is stored safely without the risk of harmful bacteria growing. The business should regularly check the refrigerator and freezer temperatures during the ongoing fair/congress.

Hot holding

If your business hot holds food, there should be a routine that guarantees all hot holding is done at a minimum of +60 degrees ºC. You need to regularly check that the hot holding equipment is functioning and that the food being hot held is sufficiently warm. You need to be aware of the risks associated with hot holding and what to do with the food if the measurements show too low a temperature.
The goal of the routine is to ensure that all hot-held food is safe to eat and that hot holding is done safely.

Reheating

If your business reheats food, you need to have a routine for how reheating is done safely. You are responsible for checking the reheating of cold food that is to be served hot. Reheated food should be heat-treated to at least +72 degrees ºC.
The goal is to ensure that all food served hot is safe to eat.

List of Suppliers

To quickly trace food, for example in the case of food poisoning, you should be able to provide information about your suppliers. Therefore, it is advisable to note down the names and phone numbers and which foods have been delivered by each supplier.