NEWS INFORMATION FROM

THE OFFICE OF MAYOR STEPHEN R. REED
City of Harrisburg
King City Government Center
Harrisburg, PA 17101-1678
Telephone: 255.3040

FOR IMMEDIATE USE
26 September 2002

CITY FOOD SERVICE BUSINESSES OFFERED FREE HEALTH CODE SEMINARS; SAFE FOOD SERVICE SESSIONS SLATED FOR SEPT. 30 ON CITY ISLAND

Harrisburg, PA—Mayor Stephen R. Reed today announced that the City will offer a free Safe Food Service training session to city-based restaurateurs and their employees on Monday, September 30, at Carousel Pavilion on City Island. For attendee convenience the free city Health Code training session will be held twice, at 8:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. to allow more employees to attend without disrupting daily business operations. The free training is being provided as part of the city’s observance of National Food Safety Month.

Reed said the training session is intended to provide restaurant and food service owners and their employees with information about the various City Health Codes which govern their businesses, and how they can easily and affordably comply with the rules. Such items as food service practices, new technologies and products, and cleanliness and safety issues are all addressed during the training session.

The Mayor said the training session, the second held so far this year, will include presentations by city health, fire, codes, tax, and police officials, along with representatives from the state Dept. of Agriculture. Lunch will be provided free of charge by Sysco Food Services of Central PA and Coca-Cola.

Several sponsoring organizations will also have displays on-hand, including the Downtown Improvement District, PA Restaurant Assn., Appalachian Restaurant Equipment Company, and Chef’s Choice Restaurant Equipment.

Reed said the city has aggressively pursued the enhancement of its food service industry in Harrisburg, with an array of new services and enforcement practices that assure greater customer satisfaction and safety. Annual ratings are now issued publicly for every restaurant and related food-service businesses in the city, with complying businesses awarded a special Health Inspection Annual Rating Decal for public display, alerting customers that the venue adheres to the highest standards of cleanliness and food service preparation.

For more information on the Safe Food Service training sessions contact the City’s Health Officer at (717) 255.6480, or via e-mail to csherrick@cityofhbg.com. For more information on National Food Safety Education Month please go to www.foodsafety.gov.

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