5 Reasons Bad Food Hygiene Ratings Can Cause Loss Of Businesses

The idea that Food Hygiene Ratings play a pivotal role in the success of an eating establishment should come as no surprise to anybody who works in a commercial kitchen. After all, there’s nothing more likely to stop a client from returning than a dose of food poisoning resulting from unsanitary kitchen conditions.

However, it goes deeper than that. A recent survey of some 2000 UK diners – conducted by a subsidiary of Proctor & Gamble – has produced fascinating statistics that everyone in the commercial food industry should be aware of, particularly in their relationship between hygiene and a positive dining experience.

First impressions

Almost half of those polled stated that they always notice the Food Hygiene Rating certificate as they enter a restaurant or other eating establishment. When you consider that 85% also considered that an eatery's cleanliness is at least as important as the taste of the food, you can see the importance of high ratings.

Guilty by association

It’s not always about the kitchen, but almost two-thirds of the diners polled advised that grubby conditions in one part of the restaurant – dusty furniture, ill-washed cutlery, etc – immediately makes them suspicious of the hygiene standards in the kitchen.

On the nose

As any chef will tell you, the experience of flavour occurs as much in the nose as in the mouth, with the olfactory senses being responsible for much of what we think of as taste. Little wonder, then that 56% of respondents said that bad odours put them off their meals.

Bad reputation

This is the crux of the matter. While only 10% of those surveyed said they would raise the matter of poor hygiene with the staff, 25% said they would tell friends and family. While that would be bad enough, 56% said that they visit new restaurants based solely on word-of-mouth recommendations. That’s a lot of potential business put needlessly at risk.

Putting their money where their mouth is

Over 33% said that they are prepared to pay more for their meal if they know they are eating in a restaurant that has exceptional standards of hygiene.

Here at Kitchen & Duct Cleaning Ltd, we provide a wide variety of commercial kitchen deep cleaning services throughout London and across the UK. If you need to improve your kitchen’s hygiene rating, give us a call today on 0208 245 8850 for your free quote.

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