🔥 Holiday Gear-Up Series, Part 6: Prepare for Heatwaves & Summer Food Safety Risks (Before They Shut You Down)
- Ben Maher
- Nov 29
- 3 min read
December in Queensland means two things:
1️⃣ Your venue is doing huge numbers
2️⃣ The temperature is trying to ruin your life
Heatwaves hit kitchens HARD:
Fridges struggle
Freezers ice up
Prep goes warm fast
Coolrooms fluctuate
Delivery stock arrives borderline
Hot holding drops temperature
Staff get fatigued
Food safety risks spike instantly
And here’s the scary part:
👉 Most food safety breaches in QLD happen between December and February.
If your venue isn’t heatwave-ready, you’re risking:
❌ Spoilage
❌ Illness outbreaks
❌ Failed inspections
❌ Fines
❌ Staff sickness
❌ Emergency “kitchen shutdown” days
❌ Losing thousands in wasted stock
Let’s stop that before it happens.
🌡️ The 7 Heatwave Risks Every Venue Must Prepare For
These are the areas most venues underestimate — until it’s too late.
1. Fridge & Freezer Strain
When the temp outside hits 30–40°C, your cold storage works twice as hard.
Checklist:
✔ Check seals
✔ Defrost freezers
✔ Clean condenser fans
✔ Don’t overpack shelves
✔ Keep doors closed
✔ Add thermometers to every fridge
✔ Record temps twice daily
If your fridges sit between 5–10°C?You’re already in the danger zone.
2. Hot Holding That Drops Too Low
Summer = insane ticket times + hot food sitting too long.
Make sure your hot holding:
✔ Is consistently 60°C+
✔ Isn’t overloaded
✔ Gets logged
✔ Is checked during rush periods
If you’re running borderline temps, December will expose you.
3. Deliveries Arriving Warm
This is a massive one.
Summer deliveries often arrive:
⚠️ Sweating
⚠️ Borderline temperature
⚠️ With weak ice packs
⚠️ In full sunlight
⚠️ Late due to traffic or delays
Before signing for ANY delivery:
✔ Temp check all chilled items
✔ Reject ANYTHING out of range
✔ Store immediately
✔ Keep an esky/gel packs near the loading area
Protect yourself — once you accept it, it’s your problem.
4. Cooling Hot Food Takes Twice as Long
The hotter the weather, the slower your cooling.
And QLD’s Food Act requires:
60°C → 21°C within 2 hours
21°C → 5°C within the next 4 hours
To hit those numbers:
✔ Use shallow pans
✔ Ice baths
✔ Blast chillers (if available)
✔ Break large batches down
✔ Never leave hot pots at room temp
Summer shortcuts = food poisoning.
5. Heat-Fatigued Staff Make More Mistakes
Staff get hotter, tired, dehydrated, and slower.
This leads to:
Cross contamination
Missed temps
Wrong labels
Miscommunication
Unsafe shortcuts
Frayed tempers
Protect your team to protect your venue:
✔ Water breaks
✔ Shift rotations
✔ No back-to-back doubles
✔ Airflow fixes
✔ Heat policies
✔ Clear food safety refreshers
Your team can’t be safe if they’re cooked.
6. Coolroom Overloading & Poor Airflow
Venues often jam every inch of their coolroom in December.
Big mistake.
Overloaded coolrooms = poor airflow = temps rise.
Do this instead:
✔ Keep gaps between items
✔ Avoid stacking too high
✔ Rotate stock properly
✔ Label EVERYTHING
✔ Add a digital temp tracker
✔ Store high-risk items near the vent
This one change can save thousands in spoiled stock.
7. Temperature Logs MUST Be Strict in Summer
If you want protection:
✔ Log temps twice daily minimum
✔ Log hot holding
✔ Log dish cooling
✔ Log deliveries
✔ Log corrections (“what did we do when it was out?”)
Logs aren’t paperwork —they’re insurance.
💡 Need a Heatwave-Proof Food Safety System? I’ve Already Built It.
My Food Safety Success System includes:
✔ Cooling logs
✔ Hot holding logs
✔ Delivery logs
✔ Corrective action records
✔ Staff training sheets
✔ Summer-safe procedures
✔ QLD-compliant policies
✔ Printable checklists
✔ Lifetime updates
Plus, I help you set it up so your team actually uses it — even in 40°C kitchens.
🟦 See the full system here: https://www.bambamculinaryconsultants.com/category/all-products
🎉 BLACK FRIDAY BONUS — Ends 30/11/25
Book a FREE 15-minute discovery call before 30/11 and get:
**🔥 20% OFF your Food Safety Success System
OR any Heatwave Safety Setup Package.**
This is one of the most important offers for QLD venues heading into summer.
👉 Book your call: https://www.bambamculinaryconsultants.com/book-online
Comments