TekChef

It is considered good practice and strongly recommended by the Foods Standards Agency for food service staff to wear hats or hair covering to prevent the contamination of food by hair; additionally, hair and the scalp can also be a source of microbial contamination particularly when operators unthinkingly scratch their heads or touch their hair without washing their hands. Hats in foodservice also serve other functions including denoting a person’s status and promoting a corporate image. Hats or caps are not worn in all food preparation establishments for a variety of reasons and it is our proposal to prove our concept of TekChef a light, cool and cheap technical headwear the manufacture of which can be automated as a continuous process and decorated with customisable digitally printed images to provide branded and promotional messages. TekChef hats will also feature our proprietary HairBarrier and StayCool technology and the hats will have anti-microbial treatments. The resulting lightweight caps will be lower cost in use, attractive to wear and be more comfortable than existing textile, paper and non-woven caps and the promotional messages they carry will provide a commercial impetus to encouraging their use and thereby improve hygiene and food quality.