Field reports from customers and partners concerning the COVID-19 pandemic

“In principle, all practices and procedures for hygiene and food safety at HUQQA are of a very high standard. However, given that we are facing a rapidly developing pandemic here, which no one in the world could have foreseen, initially we did not have any procedures or protocols that were specifically tailored to this situation. We have now adapted our food safety system accordingly and we are making sure that the precautionary measures taken by the Turkish ministries and the Scientific Committee are meticulously implemented, along with other measures.

Specifically, in addition to our existing measures, we have implemented social distancing and face shields to prevent transmission of the COVID-19 virus. Masks and gloves were already in use at HUQQA. We have also maximized the frequency of cleaning and disinfection procedures and integrated disinfection/sterilization applications such as ULV and UVC into our processes. We have also introduced practices to prevent the transmission of viruses during our key processes such as the receipt of goods, storage, production and service.

I found it very interesting that ever since the start of the pandemic, the requirements of our customers in terms of hygiene and food safety have also changed. One of the reasons I put this down to is the fact that people have learned a great deal during this period of time under the guidance of our ministries and the Scientific Committee. As a result, our guests have begun to take a closer look at the many details involved in their visit to our restaurant; the greeting and farewell, the social distancing and hygiene practices and also the behaviour of our staff and their compliance with these rules. This was gratifying for us, as it enabled us to develop as a quality-conscious brand.

We were already making comprehensive use of the digital solution from Testo. This enabled us to quickly add more quality forms at the start of the epidemic in order to implement the precautionary measures adopted by our ministries. In addition, we are constantly reviewing our system and adding new quality forms, created under the guidance of the ministries and the Scientific Committee, to further improve our standards of hygiene. Specifically, the Testo solution testo Saveris Restaurant has given us the big advantage of being able to keep a close eye on whether all the necessary measures have been implemented by our staff. This is the only way to ensure that all current food safety and hygiene practices are being strictly adhered to. And that’s why I would definitely say that the digital food safety solution from Testo is making our work more reliable and easier. But this was already the case before COVID-19. Thanks to this system, we can freely create and develop all the elements and quality documents that we need for our work, and respond appropriately to new challenges.”

Our digital solution from Testo has been used extensively during the pandemic, since cleanliness, hygiene and product quality became even more important factors than they already were. Compared to our use of testo Saveris Restaurant during pre-Corona times, there is now greater focus on the safety of our customers and employees.

Working with the system on a day-to-day basis helped us to focus on the correct and important aspects of our everyday work. For this reason, among others, I would say that the Testo solution is supporting Hungry Lion during this challenging time. And to all those responsible for quality in restaurant chains, all I can say is that the Testo system will change your world as you know it, and you will never look back. Just go for it!”

I see a particular challenge at the intersection of food safety and COVID-19, in what to do if it should turn out that the virus may also transmitted via food although this remains unlikely. The additional controls required to manage the control measures for the pandemic are taking resources from food safety which is a risk.

In my opinion, digital management systems such as Testo’s solution provide a very good basis for implementing the appropriate COVID programs and for streamlining processes and data management.”