Monthly Archives: September 2018

In light of recent reports released by ice machine manufacturer Ice-O-Matic, a staggering 40% of operators acknowledge that they are unaware of the regularity with which they clean their ice machine. Even more worrying is that they aren’t entirely certain how often they should be cleaning their equipment.

While all other aspects of the business are hygienically maintained to strict high standards, the inconspicuous and seemingly often overlooked ice machine seems to be suffering.

Canny, food safe operators would never dream of neglecting the cleaning rota when it came to tasks such as scrubbing the cooker, changing oil in the fryer or deep cleaning refrigeration. Ice machines need TLC just as much as any other piece of commercial equipment; after all they are technically another food production unit like any other.

The food industry is not an easy one to operate in. There’s a lot of competition and many elements to perfect. Around 60% of catering businesses go out of the business in their first 12 months, so how do you ensure that you’re not one of them? Understanding the issues you’ll face and developing some coping strategies is a great place to start.