In this era, “beautiful pictures, rich taste” is not enough. “Food Safety” must be raised to a level of delivery that is healthy and steps towards international standards.

Most restaurant operators often prioritize the taste of their food. But do you know that in order to make a food business successful in accordance with international standards, especially delivery, there are many important things that need to be taken into consideration, which are no less important than the taste of the food? But what are they? 'Chef Jaguar-Thirawit Disayachaipong', restaurant expert and consultant, Thai Chefs Association He is the one who will explain this matter to us.

“Most Thais tend to prioritize deliciousness. No one often talks about ‘food safety’ or ‘food safety’. Thais tend to prioritize deliciousness, appearance, and rich flavor. But in reality , if we are going to enter the international market, food safety must be our number one priority. ” Because when talking about this, there are often people who like to argue that “If it’s clean but not delicious, can it be sold?” In reality, we shouldn’t use this word. We should use the word ‘quality’, which is divided into 4 dimensions.”

1. Safety of quality packaging

“The first thing is the story Packaging Currently, there are many varieties, which must be considered as food grade, can be used to contain food and is safe without leaving any residue. Some plastic containers are plastic containers for cold food or food with a temperature not exceeding 40 degrees. Normal food temperature is around 30 degrees, but some restaurants use them to put hot food, such as using thin, clear plastic containers to put fried rice with a temperature of 50-70 degrees, which cannot withstand such a hot temperature. This is a common occurrence. Many people have never considered how many degrees the container can withstand and whether it can be put in a microwave, because we are used to eating food in a bag of curry in a plastic bag. Therefore, what food delivery operators need to pay attention to is whether the containers they use are food grade and of high quality, and how much temperature they can withstand.”

2. Place food in accordance with the packaging.

“To put it simply, Is the food that goes in the box suitable for you? If the box is good, food grade, and the food is properly placed, then it's done. For example, 'pizza'. We can see that most pizza boxes are made of corrugated cardboard that can support and absorb heat and moisture. Because if plastic or other containers are used that do not dissipate heat, Steam will be created which will make the pizza dough soft and not crispy and delicious. Or if you put fried chicken in a container that does not cool it, it will be the same. In terms of the international market, they give a lot of importance to packaging. It is clear which one should be used for hot food, which one should be used for cold food, which one should be used at what temperature, what temperature can it support? That is, the food that is made and the packaging that is used must be consistent.

If we were to go into more detail, the current boxes are very diverse and have many new innovations, such as boxes that can absorb heat. Have you ever seen why hot curry in a bag goes bad the next day? Or why hot rice in a box goes bad after being left out? Because the steam that goes up sticks to the surface of the lid. When the steam is distilled and drips down, it is a factor that causes bacteria or microorganisms to grow, causing the food to spoil easily. Nowadays, there are boxes that can support this issue. If selected correctly, it will provide safety for customers and create a good image for our brand.”

3. Food management process to make food look beautiful and taste rich.

“In delivering each box of food, we should have knowledge of the process that will keep the food looking good. For example, if I order a stir-fried vegetable delivery, how long will it take? Or what will happen along the way before it reaches the customer? For example, when the food is finished, it must be sent to the center first to wait for the rider to come and pick it up and deliver it. The time spent at each step after receiving the order and delivering it, if it takes a long time, when the stir-fried morning glory reaches the customer, it will be black and not beautiful. The important question is that we must know our food very well. When the food we choose to make into a delivery menu reaches the customer's hands, will it still look beautiful and taste good? Because if you open the box and it’s still beautiful and delicious, you get 50-60 points, which is more than halfway through. We have to know our food very well, choose food that we have a way to prepare so that it reaches the customer’s hands and is beautiful and delicious, and tastes as good as eating it at the restaurant as much as possible.”

4. Does not cause any health problems for customers.

“The most important quality is that it does not cause any health problems for the consumer. That is, when the consumer eats our food, there must be no problems at all for the consumer’s body. There are no germs, no microorganisms, no risks, and it does not accumulate to create various carcinogenic substances. In fact, the quality of food in all four aspects is interrelated and cannot be lacking in any one aspect.”

Nowadays, we still see many restaurants that still choose to use the wrong type of packaging and are not suitable for the food. This is because they do not have the knowledge or awareness of this issue, or because they want to save costs and not make the food price too expensive. They are afraid that if the price is too high, customers will not accept it, which will affect sales. Chef Jaguar spoke about this issue as follows:

“Actually, I think it’s more of a fear on the part of the distributors that if they increase the price, they’re afraid that customers won’t be able to accept it. But I would like to tell every store that when you are going to sell products through the delivery system, which will be very important in your future, but as long as you do not have a good cost calculation, which is the same issue as the cost calculation that must include the GP cost, choosing good packaging may also increase the cost. Some sellers may be kind and not dare to set the price and bear this cost themselves, which we do not want entrepreneurs to have to pay or want consumers to experience health problems from using unsuitable packaging or causing risks, which in fact, delivery has its own costs.

Therefore, entrepreneurs should dare to set realistic prices. Based on the principle of fairness to consumers Otherwise, entrepreneurs themselves will feel inferior and try to find a way out by reducing product costs, reducing costs by using inappropriate packaging, reducing product quality, reducing employees, and food delivery being slower. In other words, everything is reduced, causing the quality system to be disrupted. I think we need to both give strength to entrepreneurs and also give importance to consumers. By educating consumers that if you eat all food grade foods one day, “You are what you eat”, that is, it is also good for the health of consumers in the long run.”

Basic Food Delivery Management Tips