Food Safety Starts at the Door: 5 Solutions for Food Service Facilities

September is National Food Safety Month, making it an ideal time for restaurants, commercial kitchens, and food processing facilities to take a closer look at the physical environment surrounding their food. 

Food safety is often associated with handling, sanitation, and employee training—but the facility itself also plays an important role. Open doorways, fluctuating temperatures, heavy traffic, pests, airborne debris, and exposure during storage or transport can all make it more difficult to maintain controlled conditions. 

From PVC strip doors and impact traffic doors to air curtains and pan rack covers, the right facility solutions can help strengthen separation, support temperature control, improve traffic flow, limit environmental exposure, and protect prepared foods throughout the operation. 

Food Safety Goes Beyond Food Handling

According to the CDC, an estimated 48 million people in the U.S. suffer from foodborne illnesses each year, highlighting the importance of food safety practices throughout the food service industry. 

While proper food handling, sanitation, and employee training are essential, the physical environment also plays an important role in supporting food safety efforts. Open doorways, fluctuating temperatures, heavy traffic, pests, and exposure during transport can all introduce challenges that food processing and food service facilities need to manage. 

When it comes to food safety, some of the simplest improvements can be easy to overlook. Here are five areas where food service facilities can strengthen environmental control and better support their food safety efforts. 

1. Create Separation with Strip Doors Without Slowing Operations

Food processing facilities often need to keep different work areas separated to help reduce cross-contamination from one space to another. Strip doors provide a simple physical barrier while still allowing employees, carts, and equipment to move easily between areas. As employees and equipment pass through, the flexible strips part and return to position, maintaining a barrier without interrupting traffic flow.

For customer-facing openings, appearance can be just as important as function. ALECO's LUXE Strip Door Collection offers a more polished take on traditional strip doors, making it a great option for customer-facing areas in restaurants and food service facilities where maintaining separation without sacrificing aesthetics is important.

Beyond providing practical separation, ALECO strip doors are also well suited for food service environments. Our strip door material is made with FDA-sanctioned ingredients to meet requirements for food service operations and USDA-inspected facilities.

2. Protect Walk-In Coolers and Freezers with Low-Temp Strip Doors

According to the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, cold food should be kept at 40ºF or colder, and 0ºF or colder is best for storing frozen foods.

Maintaining consistent temperatures is essential for keeping perishable foods fresh and supporting food safety. In busy commercial kitchens, restaurants, and food processing facilities, walk-in coolers and freezers may be accessed frequently throughout the day as employees move ingredients, prepared foods, carts, and other supplies in and out. Each time the door opens, cooled air can escape and warmer outside air can enter, making it harder to maintain a consistent environment.

Low-temp strip doors provide an added layer of separation at these frequently used openings, helping reduce air exchange while still allowing employees and equipment to move easily between spaces. Unlike standard PVC, low-temperature strip material is designed to remain flexible in colder conditions, making it well suited for walk-in coolers, freezers, and other refrigerated storage areas.

ALECO strip kits that contain low-temp smooth or low-temp reinforced strip material paired with the flat aluminum MaxBullet® hardware are NSF Certified – meaning they have been independently tested and verified by the National Sanitation Foundation to meet strict public health, safety, and performance standards.

3. Manage High-Traffic Kitchen Openings with Impact Doors

Food processing facilities need doors that can keep up with the constant movement of employees, carts, and equipment throughout the workday. In busy kitchens, prep areas, and other high-traffic spaces, a swinging traffic door can help keep movement flowing without requiring personnel to stop, open, and close a traditional door, interrupting workflow – especially when employees are carrying food, supplies, or equipment.

Impact doors are designed for frequent two-way traffic, allowing personnel and equipment to move efficiently between work areas while still creating a visible, physical barrier between spaces. This makes swinging traffic doors a practical solution for busy kitchens, prep, processing, and other openings where employees regularly move between adjoining work areas. Available in both flexible and rigid options, impact doors can be selected based on the traffic and demands of the application. Their durable, easy-to-operate design allows the doors to open with impact and swing back into place after traffic passes through, helping keep adjoining areas separated without creating an unnecessary obstacle to everyday operations. Depending on the needs of the application, traffic doors can also be equipped with viewing windows to improve visibility between spaces and help personnel see approaching traffic before passing through the doorway.

By combining physical separation, convenient access, and optional visibility, impact doors can help food service facilities maintain efficient traffic flow while supporting a more controlled environment in busy areas where food, employees, and equipment are constantly on the move.

4. Create an Invisible Barrier at High-Traffic Doorways with Air Curtains

In busy food service and processing facilities, exterior doors are essential for controlling access and securing food service and food processing facilities after hours, but during the workday, high personnel traffic can keep these doors opening and closing frequently. Each opening creates an opportunity for conditioned air to escape and flying insects, dust, debris, and outside air to enter.

Air curtains create an invisible barrier of forced air across the open doorway, helping reduce air exchange and limit the entry of airborne contaminants without interfering with traffic flow. This makes them a practical addition to frequently used entrances where physical doors remain necessary for facility security.

5. Protect Prepared Foods During Storage and Transport with Pan Rack Covers

Food safety doesn't stop once food is prepared. Before it reaches the next stage of storage, packaging, transport, or service, prepared food may spend time on pan racks where it can be exposed to the surrounding environment.

Keeping food covered during these in-between stages can help protect its freshness and reduce exposure to dust, debris, and other potential contaminants.

Pan rack covers provide an added layer of protection around loaded racks while still allowing employees to move food efficiently throughout the facility. Whether prepared foods are being temporarily stored, transported between prep and serving areas, or held until they're ready for the next step, a pan rack cover helps create a barrier between the food and its surroundings.

By keeping pan racks covered when appropriate, food service and food processing facilities can better protect prepared foods throughout their journey while supporting existing food safety and freshness practices.

Where to Look for Food Safety Improvements: Take a Walk Through Your Facility

As part of National Food Safety Month, consider walking through your facility and paying particular attention to these areas: 

Building Food Safety in Your Facility

Food safety isn't the responsibility of a single product or procedure – it's a system of people, processes, equipment, and environmental controls all working together. 

Evaluating processes and solutions for openings, traffic patterns, temperature-controlled spaces, exterior exposure, and food movement can uncover opportunities to better support existing food-safety practices. 

Find the Right Solution for Your Facility

Every food service environment has different demands. From controlling high-traffic openings to protecting refrigerated spaces and prepared foods, ALECO offers solutions designed for a variety of food processing and food service applications. 

Explore ALECO's food service solutions or contact our team for help finding the right product for your facility. For more facility safety tips, check out our blog on How to Improve Workplace Safety. 

Frequently Asked Questions  

Can strip doors be used in commercial kitchens? 

Yes, strip doors can be used in many commercial kitchen and food service applications to help separate work areas while allowing employees, carts, and equipment to move freely. They can also help reduce air exchange, energy loss, and limit the movement of dust, debris, and other airborne contaminants between spaces. The appropriate strip door configuration will depend on the application, temperature, traffic, and facility requirements. 

What are the benefits of PVC strip curtains in restaurants? 

PVC strip curtains can offer several benefits in restaurants, particularly in busy back-of-house areas. They create separation between spaces while allowing employees, carts, and equipment to pass through easily. Depending on the application, they can also help maintain temperature-controlled environments, limit the movement of dust and debris, and support pest control efforts without significantly disrupting the traffic flow. 

For restaurants, this makes strip curtains especially useful around walk-in coolers and freezers, food storage and prep areas, and other frequently accessed openings where both environmental control and easy access are important. 

To read more about different strip door applications, check out our blog on Decorative Strip Doors vs Traditional Strip Doors: The Key Differences and Benefits. 

Can strip curtains help reduce cold air loss from a walk-in cooler? 

Strip curtains can help reduce cold air loss from walk-in coolers by creating a flexible barrier across the opening. For walk-in coolers and freezers, ALECO's low-temp strip material is especially well suited because it is designed to remain flexible in cold conditions. By helping maintain more consistent temperatures, strip curtains can support food freshness while reducing unnecessary energy loss. 

What type of strip curtain is best for a walk-in freezer? 

For a walk-in freezer, a low-temperature PVC strip curtain is typically the best choice. Unlike standard PVC, low-temp strip material is formulated to remain flexible in freezing conditions, allowing the strips to separate easily as employees or equipment pass through and fall back into place afterward. 

The right configuration also depends on factors such as the freezer temperature, opening size, frequency and type of traffic, and strip overlap. Choosing a strip curtain specifically designed for low-temperature applications helps maintain an effective barrier and traffic flow, reduce cold air loss, and support more consistent conditions inside the freezer. 

How do you choose the best strip door for a food service application? 

Choosing the best strip door for a food service application depends on several factors, including the size of the opening, temperature, location, and the frequency and type of traffic passing through it. For example, a walk-in freezer may require low-temperature PVC, while a busy interior opening may require a different strip size, thickness, or overlap to accommodate personnel and equipment. 

To simplify the selection process, the ALECO Strip Door Selector Tool can help determine the appropriate strip door configuration based on your specific opening and application requirements. 

What type of impact door is best for a commercial kitchen? 

The best impact door for a commercial kitchen depends on the size of the opening, frequency and type of traffic, visibility needs, and overall application. For busy kitchen and prep areas, look for an impact door designed to withstand frequent use while allowing employees, carts, racks, and equipment to move efficiently between spaces. 

Features such as viewing windows and easy two-way operation can be especially valuable in high-traffic food service environments. The right configuration should balance durability and separation with the traffic flow needed to keep a busy commercial kitchen moving efficiently. 

Where are impact doors commonly used in food processing facilities? 

Impact doors are commonly used in high-traffic openings throughout food processing and food service facilities, including commercial kitchens, prep areas, production spaces, stockrooms, receiving areas, and other back-of-house applications. Also known as traffic doors, they allow employees, carts, racks, and equipment to move efficiently between work areas while helping maintain separation between adjoining spaces. 

For applications with frequent two-way traffic, impact doors provide a durable alternative to traditional doors that need to be manually opened and closed. Depending on the application, commercial impact doors can also include viewing windows for improved visibility and are available in flexible or rigid configurations to accommodate different traffic levels and facility requirements. 

What is the difference between an impact door and a traffic door? 

The terms impact door and traffic door are often used interchangeably to describe doors designed for frequent two-way traffic in commercial and industrial facilities. These doors open when pushed by employees, carts, racks, or equipment and swing back into place after traffic passes through, allowing efficient movement between high-traffic areas. 

ALECO impact traffic doors are commonly used in commercial kitchens, restaurants, food processing facilities, warehouses, stockrooms, receiving areas, and other high-traffic openings. They are available in different materials and configurations, including flexible and rigid options, to meet the traffic, durability, visibility, and environmental needs of the application. 

What is an air curtain and how does it work? 

An air curtain is a device installed above or alongside a doorway that creates a controlled stream of air across the opening. This invisible barrier helps separate indoor and outdoor environments while allowing people and equipment to pass through without obstruction. 

When a physical door is open, the air curtain helps reduce the exchange of conditioned and outside air while limiting the entry of flying insects, dust, debris, and other airborne contaminants. This makes air curtains especially useful at frequently accessed entrances in food service and food processing facilities where maintaining traffic flow and environmental control are both important. 

Do air curtains keep flies and other flying insects out? 

Air curtains can help prevent flies and other flying insects from entering through open doorways by creating a powerful stream of air across the opening. This airflow creates an invisible barrier that makes it more difficult for flying insects to cross into the facility. 

For food service and food processing facilities, air curtains can be especially useful at frequently opened exterior entrances, helping support pest control efforts without restricting the movement of employees and other personnel. 

Why should food service operations use pan rack covers? 

Food service operations can use pan rack covers to help protect prepared foods during temporary storage and transport throughout a facility. By creating a barrier between food and the surrounding environment, covers can help reduce exposure to dust, debris, and other potential contaminants while helping maintain freshness. 

Pan rack covers are especially useful when food is being moved between prep, storage, and serving areas or held on a rack until it is ready for the next step. They provide a simple way to keep prepared foods covered and protected while supporting food safety practices. 

Where can I find reliable suppliers for food processing facility solutions? 

When choosing a supplier, look for product expertise, application support, manufacturing experience, product selection, and access to replacement components or ongoing support. 

ALECO by ES ROBBINS manufactures facility solutions for food processing environments, including PVC strip doors, impact traffic doors, air curtains, industrial partitions, anti-fatigue mats, and more. ALECO also works with a network of distribution partners to help customers find the right products for their application.