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Background

Five Guys have a reputation for remarkable burgers and fries.  

Well established in the USA, Five Guys presence in the UK and Europe is growing rapidly.  Food safety legislation varies from country to country and this makes compliance a potentially complex process for Jeremy Lockley, Five Guys' Senior Director of Food Safety and Quality Assurance. 

Five Guys were looking for a partner to support them globally with a broad spectrum of food safety solutions. Not only was effective and efficient vendor management important in this decision, global standardisation was also a key driver.  In particular, Five Guys needed a method of systemising and measuring the quality of their cooking oil. Besides legal requirements, Five Guys internal quality standards were a key driver in instigating this project.  

Solution

Working with Five Guys, Klipspringer identified three key requirements: 

• daily oil quality checks (without being a procedural or time-consuming burden)

• an arbitrary, digital measurement of cooking oil quality  
• de-skill the decision-making process of when cooking oil should be changed. 

Following a successful restaurant trial, the Ebro FOM330 Food Oil Monitor was approved for use in all Five Guys outlets. A bespoke Compliance Instrument Station was also introduced to store the Oil Monitor along with other food safety management equipment (tablet and thermometers). 

Using the Compliance Instrument Station ensures the Oil Monitor is always in the right location at the right time. This also provides adequate storage and protection when not in use.  

Specially calibrated to Five Guys' oil formula, a daily oil quality check with the FOM330 gives store, regional and national management peace of mind as well as an audit trail. This enables them to: 

• prove compliance with relevant legislation (particularly the recent Commission Regulation (EU) 2017/2158) 
• ensure product consistency globally from restaurant to restaurant 
• analyse cooking oil usage to identify where oil is being changed prematurely (facilitating a reduction in operating costs).