The US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has released food delivery guidelines that come just short of requiring food safety training for food delivery drivers.  A4DD offers an inexpensive 35-minute online training course that covers the material the FDA wants delivery drivers to know.  Click here to check it out and get squared up with FDA standards today.  

So what exactly does the FDA have to say about this?  “A Direct to Consumer (DTC) delivery company should ensure adequate food safety training and supervision for all personnel handling food”.

The use of the word “should” is interesting.  “Should” is not the same as “must”.  Does that mean that  food delivery drivers don’t need to worry about training or companies requiring you to show proof of training?

Imagine a customer who gets sick from mishandled food.  Maybe the delivery was late or maybe food items were mixed up that shouldn’t be.  It’s America so they hire an attorney, who checks and finds out their driver had no training in safe food handling.  You say that there was no law requiring training.  Case closed?

Not so fast.  The attorney explains to the jury how the FDA made it clear food delivery drivers “should” have training.  The driver “should have” taken food safety training according to FDA guidance, but chose not to – even though inexpensive training is available.  Now someone is seriously sick or worse.  Want to bet on how the jury decides your case?  Or just start writing out a big fat check to the plaintiff?

It is just a matter of time before a high profile case of a child or infant getting sick (or even dying) comes along that bring this issue into the spotlight.  Plaintiff’s attorneys will likely turn illness from delivered food into the next big wave of lawsuits.

Independent delivery drivers and companies that use them should take note now.  You could well be sued if someone suspects that mishandling of a food delivery caused them to get sick. And if that happens, you certainly don’t want to explain why you never took a training course in safe food delivery.  Lawyers have a few choice words for that: “negligence”, “liability”, and “damages”.

A4DD members can take care of this risk in less than an hour for around $10 or less.  Check out our interactive online Safe Food Handling for Delivery Drivers training course today.

Also, for your reading pleasure, the FDA document that contains the new standards is “Guidance Document for Direct-to-Consumer and Third-Party Delivery Service Food Delivery”.