September signals the start of National Food Safety Month 2025. There’s no better opportunity for restaurant operators and foodservice teams to revisit the habits, systems and expectations that keep kitchens safe. It’s time to double-check the details, reinforce training and give your staff the confidence to prevent mistakes before they happen.

 

This year’s campaign, sponsored by Tork, delivers exactly that, with a fresh theme and practical tools built to make a real impact where it counts: on the floor, in the restraurant and during every service shift.

Food Safety’s Most Wanted

 

The truth is, violations don’t always show up with warning signs or flashing alarms. All too often, they sneak in. A dirty rag here. A mislabeled container there. Before you know it, an invisible threat is sitting in your restaurant—or worse, on a guest’s plate.

 

That’s why this September, we are lining up the four most common health code violations that are responsible for everything from foodborne illness outbreaks to failed inspections. We’re counting down from the lesser-known slip-ups to the most notorious repeat violations. We’re calling it: Food Safety’s Most Wanted.

 

Every week in September, we’ll help you:

 

• Identify the culprit (because they’re sneakier than you think)
• Understand the risk (some of these carry serious consequences)
• Prevent repeat offenses (with tools that raise awareness and drive behavior change)

 

We’ll provide tools you can use to highlight National Food Safety Month in your foodservice establishment, including educational assets, prevention checklists and shift meeting briefs built for quick, effective leadership conversations.

 

 

Why Food Safety’s Most Wanted Matters

 

We analyzed thousands of inspection reports and cross-referenced them with our own training data. The result was four violations that accounted for the majority of citations, closures and foodborne illness risks in foodservice operations:

 

• Improper temperature control
• Poor personal hygiene
• Cross-contamination
• Inadequate cleaning and sanitization

 

Together, they form a persistent threat to operational success and guest safety. The CDC estimates that 48 million people in the U.S. get sick from foodborne illnesses every year, with 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths.

 

Many of those cases are linked directly to these foodservice missteps. These outlaws cost more than just fines. They erode trust, damage your brand and threaten your staff and guests. This year, we’re going after them directly.

Identification & Prevention

 

Each week of the campaign will highlight one outlaw threatening food safety. We will walk through one major violation with a two-pronged approach.

 

IDENTIFICATION

 

Think of this as violation forensics. We’ll break down how each issue shows up in a real-world kitchen, along with what to watch for during prep, service and cleanup. Some violations are obvious (like cross-contamination), but others, like poor sanitizing procedures or improper cooling, can be far more subtle.

 

PREVENTION

 

This is where the focus shifts from identifying problems to actively preventing them. Each week’s materials include expert tips to correct the issue, along with checklists and tools to support daily oversight. You’ll also get a downloadable resource - like a poster, guide, or template - that can be put to use right away.

What To Expect in National Food Safety Month 2025

 

WEEK 1 – INADEQUATE CLEANING AND SANITIZATION
We’ll show you how to spot sanitation failures, where bacteria love to hide and the difference between cleaning and sanitizing (yes, there’s a difference). You’ll also get an updated poster pack, a quiz and a Shift Meeting Brief to reinforce best practices across your team.

 

WEEK 2 – CROSS-CONTAMINATION
We’ll cover the science behind outbreaks and how poor food handling turns into a major risk. Your prevention tools will include our 3-Legged Approach guide, shift brief and discussion prompts to untangle the mix-ups before they spread.

 

WEEK 3 – POOR PERSONAL HYGIENE
Get ready for updated hygiene stats, refreshed training materials and prevention posters that go beyond “wash your hands” to address what’s actually going wrong on the line. Your Shift Meeting Brief helps managers lead with clarity and consistency, even during the busiest shifts.

 

WEEK 4 – IMPROPER TEMPERATURE CONTROL
This week is all about time and temperature; when to cool, when to hold and how to log. You’ll get a printable chart, customizable time/temperature policy and a Shift Meeting Brief designed to reinforce high standards during service.

 

WEEK 5 – RECAP
The final week wraps the campaign with a recap blog, downloadable tools and a full toolkit covering all six violations. You’ll also get our refreshed guide to building a culture of food safety.

New This Year: Shift Meeting Briefs for Leadership

 

To help leaders bring these lessons to life, each violation comes with a Shift Meeting Brief. These one-page, shift meeting brief templates from RestaurantOwner.com are built for pre-shift huddles or weekly manager meetings. They’re short, sharp and designed to spark meaningful conversation. Managers can use it to refresh food safety priorities, reinforce accountability with examples their team will recognize and and strengthens your food safety culture the door for team input. The goal is to make food safety stick by embedding it into the daily rhythm of your restaurant.

 

Exclusive National Food Safety Month Offer: Bonus Tools and Training Support

 

To help operators save on safety this month, we’re offering
20% off on select ServSafe products, including our ServSafe
Manager, ServSafe Food Handler and ServSafe Allergens
courses, all month long!

 

 

Restrictions apply.

 

Brought to You by Our Sponsors

   

Don’t Miss a Single Resource

 

Join the National Food Safety Month 2025 mailing list and get:

 

• Weekly violation breakdowns
• Leadership Shift Meeting Briefs
• Posters, quizzes and toolkits
• A full campaign wrap-up with bonus materials