Eldora is widely known for its expertise in the area of food safety. The company constantly ensures that all its employees have a perfect awareness of hygiene requirements. Several public bodies have called on its expertise in order to train their members of staff in this highly complex field.
Our approach mainly consists of constantly ensuring that all our employees have a perfect knowledge of hygiene issues. We therefore make sure that our members of staff take a specialised training course once a year. Its aim is to remind them of the essential habits and behaviours to adopt in order to ensure that the basic rules are strictly applied. We also have a set of courses aimed at making all our restaurant managers and head chefs aware of the essential nature of irreproachable food safety.
Food safety would not be complete without constant vigilance, ensuring that we are informed of any changes to food safety legislation as quickly as possible. This responsibility is entrusted to the Quality department, which takes note of all the safety recommendations issued by the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (Office Fédéral de la Sécurité alimentaire et des Affaires Vétérinaires – OSAV). Through our vigilance, we track all new measures that could affect the smooth operation of your kitchen.
Regarding food production at the Le Pommier restaurant, we follow the same food safety strategy currently applied to all Eldora restaurants. This strategy is steered by the Quality department and guarantees that extremely high standards are implemented by all employees, as well as total consistency between Eldora's restaurants.
Good catering only makes sense if it is accompanied by extreme rigour in this area, one of the main concerns of our profession. Applied to every stage of our services, it is respected by our staff who strive to guarantee irreproachable food reliability at all times. Building on our experience in catering for public bodies and proven scientific expertise, our management plan consists of 3 distinct steps:
Prevention
Risk management requires total mastery of the first link in the food chain: the list of approved suppliers and products. Eldora's Quality and Purchasing services work in tandem to ensure that our suppliers share our strict food safety standards. Spot hygiene checks are carried out for every new supplier and as part of our ongoing monitoring process. The main focus is on the information and training of Eldora's associates at every hierarchical level, because our operational teams are key to the smooth running of the system.
Pre-emption
We are very aware that we are operating in a constantly evolving environment. We therefore have a system of regulatory and technological checks that allow us to be instantly alerted as soon as new risks emerge. The Quality department centralises alerts from a network of various sources: federal offices, suppliers of intelligence, subscriptions, a network of scientific experts and opinion leaders, and conferences providing additional expertise. This pre-emption allows us to adapt our directives to real issues.
Control
The "control" process is vital to a subject as sensitive as food security. In order to guarantee a flawless system, several levels of appropriate controls are implemented as soon as a restaurant is opened or taken over: self-monitoring by the teams, external HACCP audits, microbiological analyses and internal audits. In order to remain independent, this monitoring is the responsibility of the Quality department, which manages the planning, reports to the various stakeholders within the company and guarantees the implementation of corrective measures.
The bedrock of food safety management, our management system is developed, revised and implemented by food hygiene specialists. It is presented to all cantonal chemists every time it is revised and is recognised by the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (SCAV). It is organised around several modules:
An HACCP team
A multidisciplinary team representing the various activities in the process constantly ensures identification of dangers and analysis of the risks to which our establishments and production sites are vulnerable. It analyses the reporting data and develops strategic and operational recommendations in order to improve the system.
An Eldora guide to good hygiene practices
Our HACCP team drafts our good hygiene practices guide for our field of activity, with respect for the "Bonnes pratiques dans l'hôtellerie et la restauration" (Good practices in the hotel and catering industries – BPHR) guide recognised by the Federal Office of Public Health. It demonstrates our desire for excellence, going beyond regulatory requirements, and serves as our internal regulations that list all hygiene directives regarding the design of the premises, the various equipment, the employees, the raw materials, "sensitive" foodstuffs, the various preparation methods, the management of leftovers and waste, allergies and food intolerances.
An advanced HACCP monitoring system
Conforming with our strict standards, we have a monitoring and traceability system that measures and checks the key stages in the meal production process. Furthermore, at all our restaurants and kitchens, Eldora takes a daily sample of every meal prepared and served on that day, which is conserved for 7 days at negative temperatures in case it is needed by the cantonal chemist or an independent laboratory should food poisoning be suspected.
Traceability of goods
Going beyond statutory obligations, the traceability of goods provides a guarantee that food monitoring takes place throughout the food chain. Eldora's approved suppliers are contractually obliged to provide certain information on their labels and delivery notes. Eldora's teams store the labels of raw materials used to produce dishes for a period of 2 months. Every day, over 5,000 labels of this type are stored at Eldora restaurants.
An independent annual global evaluation
The hygiene audit, also known as the HACCP audit, ensures respect for the regulations governing the application of so-called "self-monitoring" measures within your catering service. This check, carried out without notice by an independent external service provider, allows an assessment of the premises to be established. The visit report also provides staff with information that helps us examine the extent to which Eldora's requirements are being met. This external audit is carried out at the Le Pommier restaurant kitchen. It is completed by taking samples from the food and surfaces.
Two internal audits
After setting up the necessary directives and self-monitoring systems in conjunction with our restaurant manager, Eldora's Quality department is responsible for carrying out regular internal checks via two separate audits, the first checking 40 points and the second 200 points. These internal audits complete the HACCP audit by the independent laboratory and above all, guarantee regular assessment throughout the year. The audit made up of 200 points, also known as the Global Quality audit, is aimed at reviewing any non-conformities from previous audits and checking the effectiveness and durability of the required corrective measures.
Irreproachable cleanliness of premises and materials
Food safety obviously requires a high level of cleanliness at all your catering premises. That is why, with the help of our cleaning products supplier, we devise a precise cleaning plan, taking into account the configuration of your production, storage and distribution premises. The programme also informs our teams about the correct product dosage, the right way to handle products and the protective clothing to be worn (eyewear, gloves, pinafores, etc.). In addition to visual checks, samples taken from surfaces by the laboratory are used to check the microbiological cleanliness of the environment.
A strong partnership with the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (SCAV)
The Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (SCAV), the supervisory authority in the field of food safety in Geneva, inspects the establishments and organisations operated by Eldora once a year. This relationship is one of true partnership and is enhanced by annual meetings organised by Eldora. Therefore, in addition to the inspection reports that systematically receive a written response from the Quality service, when corrective measures are requested, conversations take place with the inspection managers to whom we transparently communicate the results of our monitoring system.
A recognised independent laboratory
In the field of risk management and audit, independence is key. Therefore, for the purposes of food safety, Eldora has committed to entrusting the evaluation of our sanitary practices to an external laboratory. Ecobien is a member of the Swiss Médisupport network (one of the largest medical laboratory networks) and a company of national renown that enjoys a solid reputation in the food industry, with some excellent references. The teams are overseen by experienced managers with a background in the veterinary sector and cantonal inspections, and are subject to a confidentiality clause.
An exclusive Eldora internet platform dedicated to quality
Our Quality service has developed an internet platform dedicated to quality that groups together all the audits and corrective measures carried out within the Le Pommier restaurant. This centralised application, exclusive to Eldora, allows managers to monitor the status of your catering service in "real time", based on quality, hygiene, safety and environmental criteria, as well as the corrective actions underway. This monitoring tool also hosts a "management cockpit" built on automated operational indicators that are presented annually in the management review.
A Quality service with a strong presence in the field and a clear desire to train others
We believe that sanitary practices must above all be constructed and consolidated alongside our teams working at your two catering services. Our Quality Advisor is regularly present in the field to support your Restaurant Manager. He lends his expertise to various stages, such as:
when a new service point opens;
when the activity at a service point changes;
when a new manager arrives;
as part of our continuing education;
when equipment breaks down or during building work.
In addition to the training given by our Quality Advisor on-site, the Eldora training centre provides two modules on the subject of food safety: "Hygiene and good professional practices" and HACCP and self-monitoring".
Training Eldora employees
Eldora's employees are essential to the implementation and respect of our food safety management system. We believe that the behaviour of each individual guarantees the system's success. Eldora has therefore forged strong ties between its food safety managers and the Eldora training centre. Every year, the Training Manager sets the learning objectives and revises the content of the courses on hygiene and food safety, based on the consolidated results of the year's audits. Each year, therefore, over 1000 Eldora employees take a one-day training course on good hygiene practices and the HACCP system in force at our company.
