by Misunderstanding of regulations perpetuates poor cleaning
Many operators and even regulators continue to use and recommend cleaning restaurant tables and other high-touch surfaces with a reusable rag stored in a bucket of sanitizing solution.
This solution is easily degraded and difficult to maintain. It is also a poor cleaner allowing contamination buildups capable of harboring norovirus and other guest-threatening bacteria and virus.
The confusion over the food code advice stems from the rule that you must store a reusable rag in a sanitizer solution. What is being ignored is the better way to clean high-touch surfaces, using a single-use paper towel with a spray cleaner-disinfectant. This choice eliminates the bucket along with the poorly controlled task of maintaining an effective and safe level of disinfectant.
