THE unpalatable truth about what can happen if food hygiene is not taken seriously is being digested by people working in the catering industry, thanks to a former Kidderminster hotelier.

Chris Dale, who at various times, ran the Gainsborough House and the former Cedars, now gives catering workers food for thought about legal requirements through courses he runs, under the name of Claymore Training.

Mr Dale, 64, held the latest of his day-long courses at Stourport Manor Hotel on Monday. It was attended by 11 representatives of Wyre Forest hotels and takeaways.

On the learning menu were analysis of food hazards, equipment cleaning, waste disposal and the importance of clean clothing.

Mr Dale, of Jellyman Close, Kidderminster, leased the Gainsborough House from its opening in 1972 before building The Cedars in 1985, eventually selling it in 1997.

He also worked in the United States before returning to the UK catering industry, when he joined the industrial catering division of Mars.

His wealth of experience in the trade is now being brought to bear as he highlights the pitfalls awaiting anyone who is slapdash about food handling.

"At the moment, it's only suggested that people should be trained in food hygiene," he said, "but, by January 1, 2006, it will be law that all people who handle food will have to have some qualification in food hygiene."

The legislation will be so far reaching, he added, that even places like church halls would need to ensure they conformed to the regulations.

Food scares over recent decades have raised awareness of potentially lethal illnesses - such as salmonella, listeria and e-coli - which originate in food not managed carefully.

Mr Dale goes to the root of the problems, explaining: "We cover what bacteria are, how they cause food poisoning and we do hygiene control."

Also on the agenda are kitchen design, pest control and appliance control.

"We cover cleaning and disinfection and hygiene and the law as it applies to people who work with food," he added.

Anyone in the catering industry who fails to take adequate safeguards might find they get their just desserts in the form of fines running into thousands of pounds - or even closure on the spot - which they would find hard to stomach.