Summer is one of the busiest seasons for caterers, concession stands and food trucks, but it’s also one of the most challenging times of year to maintain food safety. Whether you’re serving at an outdoor concert, sporting event, wedding or birthday party, rising temperatures can quickly turn a delicious meal into a food safety risk.
When food enters the “Danger Zone,” bacteria can multiply rapidly, increasing the likelihood of foodborne illness and creating an unnecessary hazard for chefs. As a reminder, food safety guidelines require cold foods to be held at or below 40°F (4°C) and hot foods to remain above 140°F (60°C) throughout service.
The key to preventing these problems is simple: use Cambro products to maintain safe holding temperatures from transport through service. We have 5 crucial areas to focus on to keep food safe and customers satisfied until the last summer sun.
1. Control Food Temperatures During Transport
Food safety begins long before guests arrive. The moment food leaves the kitchen, maintaining proper temperatures becomes a race against the heat. Cambro insulated transport units allow chefs to safely transport both hot and cold foods to off-site events while minimizing temperature loss.
- Hot foods: Cambro is synonymous with food transport. Nicknamed “hot boxes,” Cambro insulated transport units are the premiere product to safely hold hot food for extended periods of time. Ranging from lightweight Cam GoBoxes to heavy-duty Pro Cart Ultra carriers, Cambro insulated transport units keep food safe for at least 4 hours. However, frequently opening your unit drastically reduces the safety of the food inside. Utilize Cambro’s electric units to keep food safe when you need to access it throughout service.
- Cold foods: Camchillers® are an absolute must during the summer. Pre-chill your carriers and insert one or two Camchillers® to extend temperature retention during transport and service.
2. Prevent Ice From Melting Under Pressure
From supporting cold holding to ensuring refreshing beverages, ice plays a critical role in summer events. Traditional coolers frequently struggle in extreme heat, reducing ice to slush. SlidingLid™ Ice Caddies are designed to help keep ice frozen throughout every long, hot day. Designed with thick foam insulation and a recessed well with drain shelf, ice is kept separate from meltwater and remains frozen for hours. Plus, its unique sliding lid minimizes exposure and helps reduce the risk of cross contamination.
🍹Summer Beverage Tip:
Serving dirty sodas, lemonades, mocktails, or other high-ice drinks? Add an Ice Caddy Drain Grate to help keep ice elevated above meltwater, so crews can maximize every load during peak service.
3. Keep Drinks Refreshingly Cold
There are few things that feel better on a blazing hot day than a cool drink. Insulated beverage servers are essential at summer events because beverages quickly get warm when exposed to the elements. Camtainers® and Ultra Camtainers maintain cold beverage temperatures for at least 4 hours, making them ideal for serving water, iced tea and lemonade. Made from durable plastic, this heavy-duty beverage server is made to handle rigorous use and tough environments. Ensure everyone at your event stays hydrated without worrying about constantly replenishing ice to keep it cold.
4. Handwashing = Food Safety
When you first think of food safety, the “food” portion is likely top of mind. But, a crucial aspect of food safety is literally in your hands. While temperature management is a high priority, preventing cross-contamination is equally important. Outdoor venues often lack permanent handwashing facilities that are close enough to where you’re preparing food. In fact, we find that cooking anywhere outside of a traditional kitchen necessitates a handwash station.
Cambro offers three distinct handwashing solutions that are a must-have for outdoor events.
- Handwash Station: The most popular option because it is extremely affordable, fits in any vehicle and is easy for anyone to carry. Using a Camtainer as your foundation, Cambro offers a Handwash Accessory equipped with a paper towel holder and soap dispenser to wash your hands anywhere.
- Mobile Handwash Station: This handwashing unit is ideal for travelling to high volume events and provides a completely touchless and sanitary experience. The Mobile Handwash Station provides approximately 200 handwashings per tank without the need for plumbing or electrical hookups and is equipped with two automatic soap dispensers and a foot pump to activate water flow.
- The CamKiosk Hand Sink Cart: This cart is ideal for hotels and venues with outdoor events. Equipped with two 5-gallon freshwater tanks, double stainless-steel sinks, two 7.5-gallon wastewater bins, a hand soap dispenser and a paper roll, the Hand Sink Cart is compatible with 110V electrical outlets and offers enough hot or cold water for up to 70 hand washings.
Providing employees with a dedicated handwashing station demonstrates a commitment to food safety and helps meet health code requirements in many states.
5. Maintenance Without the Mess
Outdoor buffets, condiment stations and beverage service areas often struggle to maintain cold temperatures throughout the day. If you’ve ever seen bottles of creamer floating in a bucket at an outdoor coffee station and wondered if there was a better way, we have good news for you: there is!
ColdFest® Pans and Rounds offer a simple and effective solution. Filled with a non-toxic refrigerant gel core, these containers can be frozen overnight and help keep foods cold for hours without needing ice. ColdFest containers are ideal for holding salad dressings, condiments, dairy products and more at outdoor events. Eliminating ice not only creates a cleaner presentation but also reduces the risk of contamination caused by melting water and repeated handling.
For those looking to elevate their buffet presentations without sacrificing food safety, the Versa Tabletop Food Bar provides flexible cold-holding for any summer event. Compatible with GN Food Pans, ColdFest Pans, Salad Bowl Holders, Crock Holders and Buffet Camchillers, the Versa Tabletop Food Bar attractively organizes and displays foods while keeping them safely chilled for hours without the maintenance of ice.
Summer events bring unique challenges, but by focusing on temperature control during transport, holding and service, chefs can confidently serve high-quality food even in extreme heat. With Cambro’s wide selection of insulated solutions and portable handwashing stations, foodservice professionals can maintain safe temperatures, reduce contamination risks and deliver a better guest experience all season long. Because when temperatures rise, food safety matters more than ever.
