If you need training, certification, or both, we have it at Victoria First Aid.
Sign up for Food Safety Training in Victoria?
Enrollment is pretty easy, since we have a variety of methods available to students. The most popular by far is online sign-up. We keep an enrollment form (filled out and submitted on the Victoria First Aid website) available all day, 24/7, for prospective students. All forms are processed during regular business hours, so if you sent in a form expect a reply during the next business day.
If you are not comfortable using our form, or have no access to internet, we allow in-person enrollments or sign up through e-mail or over the telephone call. Any of these methods will do.
Training in food safety
Food safety is a training program that is meant for food service workers, both frontline and administrative workers. The program is called FOODSAFE throughout British Columbia, handled in the province by the BC Center for Disease Control and the local health authorities. It focuses on teaching students about safe food handling, sanitation, and work safety.
There are four types of programs, the first two are levels in food safety and the last two are special program types. FOODSAFE level 1 (1) is focused on building skills and introducing the concepts of food safety to frontline service workers. FOODSAFE level 2 (2) is focused on planning, targeted mainly towards administration.
The third type is a refresher class (3), focused on updates and certificate renewal for people who have trained in FOODSAFE previously. It is a shorter kind of program. The last is food safety training by correspondence (4). This is catered to working students, allowing them to be free from a strict weekly schedule. They are simply required to finish the program in six months.
Program training fees
- FOODSAFE level 1 – $110, 8 hours
- FOODSAFE level 2 – $165, 12 hours
- Refresher – 3 hours
- Correspondence – $85, 6 months (plus 2 months for an additional $25)
Getting started: The Norovirus
Foodborne illnesses are typically caused by a pathogen or a poisonous substance (e.g. pesticide). Pathogens are dangerous microorganisms that can spread disease is ingested or taken in by the body. The most common pathogen that causes foodborne illness is called the Norovirus. However, it is hard to identify because the diagnostic procedure for it is not widely available and can be quite expensive.
The mode of transmission of the Norovirus is by the fecal-oral route between humans. The organism can contaminate food which is then ingested by the body causing symptoms of diarrhea. It can incubate from 24 to 48 hours before the infected person starts manifesting symptoms. Food can become contaminated by poor sanitation and infection control, especially if food service workers of an establishment do not practice proper hand hygiene.