Ice Machines, Beverage Dispensers & Other Overlooked Food Safety Hazards

At the end of the spring semester in our campus food production lab, we’re fortunate to have the opportunity to hit pause and reset for the summer and prepare for fall—a luxury many foodservice operations don’t often get. During this time, we can deep clean, shut down equipment, and perform a thorough reset of the space. While some school foodservice programs may also have this seasonal window, many commercial kitchens operate year-round and rarely have the chance to step back in this way.

Among the many pieces of equipment that we focus on cleaning during this time are the ice machine and soda dispensers.  We clean them throughout the year, too, but they are pieces of equipment that are sometimes neglected. I can see why some may forget about them. In food safety training, much attention is paid to keeping food at safe temperatures, avoiding cross-contamination, and ensuring hand hygiene. While the spotlight is often on cooking and holding procedures, some food safety hazards are hiding in plain sight: ice machines, beverage dispensers, and other equipment that’s easy to forget during daily cleaning routines.

Ice is considered a food under FDA guidelines, which means it must be handled and stored with the same care as any other consumable. Yet, ice machines are notorious for harboring mold, slime, and bacteria, often due to irregular cleaning and maintenance. Ice scoops left on top of the machine, hands reaching into bins, or contaminated utensils can all introduce pathogens. When was the last time you inspected the water line to your ice machine – or even more importantly, the filter? Just as with any surface, if they are not cleaned and sanitized regularly, the risk of contamination only grows.

In foodservice operations, ice is an important component of the service and production processes. It is used for both beverages and for cooling of food. Thus, it is important to be diligent in cleaning and monitoring ice machines.

…Food safety isn’t just keeping hot foods hot and cold foods cold; it’s about the unseen risks that accumulate over time.

Soda fountains and beverage dispensers can also be a hidden hazard. Sugary syrups and low-acid liquids provide a perfect breeding ground for bacteria and yeast, especially in and around the nozzles and drip trays. These areas often go unnoticed in daily cleaning routines and can develop biofilms—thin layers of microbial growth that are hard to remove and can contaminate drinks. In most cases, the trays themselves are dark in color, often black, meaning spotting these biofilms is not easy to do visually.

Another issue arises with the internal tubing of beverage systems. Without proper flushing and sanitization, residue can build up, leading to off-flavors and microbial risks. In both commercial and institutional settings, ensuring that staff are trained to clean these systems according to the manufacturer’s specifications is essential.

Beyond ice and beverages, there are many overlooked surfaces that require consistent attention. Refrigerator gaskets can collect food particles and condensation, creating a moist, dark environment where mold and bacteria thrive. Handles of reach-in coolers, microwave buttons, and faucet levers are frequently touched but seldom cleaned with the same rigor as food prep surfaces.

Food safety isn’t just keeping hot foods hot and cold foods cold; it’s about the unseen risks that accumulate over time. By creating comprehensive cleaning schedules that include non-obvious equipment and surfaces, and by regularly training staff on the “why” behind those practices, foodservice operations can protect both their customers and their reputations. After all, preventing illness doesn’t just happen on the line—it happens behind the ice machine, under the soda fountain, and everywhere in between. Risk Nothing.

Don’t Underestimate the Importance of Employee Health as we head into the Winter Months

Early this month, I ran across an article discussing an outbreak investigation in the Australian Capital Territory. The outbreak caused more than 200 people to fall ill and was one of the most widespread outbreak investigations in the history of the territory.  The cause was traced back to Norovirus, a virus I am sure you have heard us opine about in this blog before.

Exclusion and Restrictions: Understanding Employee Health and the Food Code

I received a call earlier in the month from a foodservice operator who suspected that one of their employees may have fallen ill and wondered if they had to send the employee home for the day.  Once I started to ask a few more questions, it became obvious that the operator wasn’t really in-tune with the food code requirements on restrictions or exclusions for employees who may not be feeling well.  Given that most operations are dealing with staff shortages currently and the fact that we are about to head into the fall and winter – when we tend to see an increase in upper respiratory and other illnesses, such as the flu - it seemed like a very timely and important topic for the blog this month.

Cross Contamination and the Surfaces that go Unnoticed

In October, I ran across a new research study published in the Journal of Food Protection in early-September.  The article explored cross contamination in consumer kitchens during meal preparation. One of the authors was a previous SafeBites presenter, Dr. Ellen Shumaker, at North Carolina State University.  Although the setting was consumer kitchens and not the commercial kitchen many of you deal with daily, the findings were very applicable to what we often see in the foodservice setting.