PanPals®: A Smart Solution for Restaurants Facing Labor Shortages
The restaurant industry continues to face a growing challenge: understaffing. According to recent industry reporting, labor shortages are not only costly for operators but are also expected to persist—and potentially worsen over time.
For restaurant teams already stretched thin, this creates ongoing pressure to maintain efficiency, cleanliness, and food safety standards with fewer hands on deck.
So where can operators make an immediate impact?
The Hidden Cost of Cleanup
One of the most time-consuming tasks in any kitchen is cleaning pans, trays, and containers. When staffing is limited, these responsibilities can slow down service, increase labor costs, and pull employees away from higher-value tasks.
In an environment where every minute counts, reducing cleanup time can make a meaningful difference.
Your Best Pal in the Kitchen
PanPals® are designed to help restaurants simplify cleanup and reduce labor demands.
Made from durable nylon, PanPals® can withstand temperatures from -50º to 400º and are available in a variety of sizes to fit everything from soup kettles to full-size hotel pans.
By incorporating PanPals® into daily operations, kitchens can:
- Reduce cleaning time significantly
- Lower water, electricity, and chemical usage
- Prevent grease and food from clogging drains
- Improve overall efficiency with smaller teams
Working Smarter in a Labor-Challenged Industry
With understaffing continuing to impact the industry, solutions that streamline operations are more valuable than ever.
PanPals® allow staff to spend less time scrubbing and more time focusing on food preparation and customer experience—helping restaurants maintain standards even with limited labor.
See the Impact for Yourself
Want to know how much your operation could save in time and cost?
Explore PanPals® and use the savings calculator:
https://foodhandler.com/panpals-no-mess-easy-cleanup-high-heat-pan-liners-and-bags/
References: https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/workforce/understaffing-restaurants-costly-likely-get-worse
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Sanitation, Sanitation, Where Art Thou?
Continuing the theme I picked up on a few months ago, discussing common causes of foodborne illness, I’d like to focus this blog on cross contamination, more precisely sanitation. Sanitation is another issue that employees don’t often do at home, so they discount the importance of it in the food production environment. That is to say that they have never made someone sick at home because they only clean their countertops and they have likely never sanitized their kitchen, so why is it so important in a foodservice facility?
Handwashing: The Habit that Isn’t as Common as We May Think
Earlier this year, I started to focus our FoodHandler Food Safety blogs on common food safety issues faced in each foodservice operation across the world. We’ve covered some of the most common issues, but perhaps none is more common than improper hand hygiene.
Is Implementing a Color-Coded Food Safety Plan Right for your Operation?
Foodborne pathogens are by far the most prevalent cause of foodborne illness in the United States and across the world. There are 31 known agents that cause foodborne illnesses, and more that are unspecified or yet undiscovered – remember, E. Coli 0157:H7 wasn’t identified until the early-1980s. It is estimated each year, 48 million illnesses occur because of these known and unknown pathogens, resulting in over 3,000 deaths.
Maintaining your Equipment: Is it the Missing Ingredient in your Recipe for Food Safety?
Although I am no longer in day-to-day operations, between our students and foodservice lab at the university and my volunteer activities in my local church, I keep a close hand in food production. This past week, I had the opportunity to lead a group of men at our church in preparation of a luncheon for 100 women who were attending a spirituality retreat. Over the course of the morning, I realized our main cooler in the kitchen was not functioning properly and was about 10˚F above the required temperature. While we do have a commercial kitchen, we do not routinely log temperatures, so when the unit started to malfunction is questionable. Even more concerning was not the lunch we were preparing for, but the dinner that was served the night before for 300+ families in the parish.
