The guide, from UKHospitality (UKH), sponsored by Food Alert, covers all manner of food incidents, from a loss of power and water supply failure to spills, breakages and suspected food crime. It also covers enforcement, allergens, customer complaints, flooding and more.
The advice covers a range of incidents such as glass breakages in food preparation or storage areas.
For example, it advises businesses who have glass breakages to stop food production immediately and not restart until the breakage has been fully dealt with.
Any open food in the immediate vicinity of the breakage must be disposed of immediately. Operators must also take action to remove, and check for further breakage, check for visible glass fragments and put any plates through the dishwasher.
Power loss
In the case of a pub facing a loss of power, operators were advised to keep all refrigerator and freezer doors closed and consider taping doors shut in a prolonged power outage.
The guide also revealed hot food must be kept above 63°C to ensure safety and if this drops the food can only be kept for a maximum of two hours, but only once.
UKH said key elements of the guide have assured advice under its primary authority partnership with Cornwall County Council.
The trade body added this means businesses following the guidance can be confident they are complying with legal requirements. UKH claimed the guide has been recognised as the leading document governing incidents in hospitality.
UKH chief executive Allen Simpson said: “Hospitality venues are live, working environments and, invariably, incidents will happen which we’re unable to predict.
Preparation
“Thorough preparation and knowing what to do when an incident does occur is so important, for both staff and customers.”
He added: “Whether it’s a loss of power, a flood, or a safety incident, our new Incident Guide provides businesses with the tools they need to deal with the incident on a practical basis and comply with their legal requirements.”
Food Alert, who sponsored the guide’s newly appointed managing director, Fraser Parramint, said: “As food safety partners of UKHospitality, we are pleased to have collaborated on a second guide designed to support hospitality businesses.”
“The Incident Guide offers clear, actionable steps that empower teams to respond confidently and compliantly to a wide range of scenarios, based on our 30+ years of hands-on experience.
“In high-pressure environments like hospitality, having structured, expert-led guidance is critical — not just for legal compliance, but for maintaining customer trust and business continuity.”
