Safety In The Kitchen

Commercial kitchens are a busy, high-risk area and so it is hugely important that they contain the most practical and up-to-date health and safety precautions. A kitchen mat is a cost-effective means of significantly improving the safety of your kitchen and of your staff; from chefs to waitresses, they’ll thank you for investing in their wellbeing, and making their time at work easier and more enjoyable. 

At Mats4U, we pride ourselves in offering the best and most affordable matting solutions for a number of applications, across a diverse range of sectors. Our wealth of experience and expertise means that we can offer keen insight and advice, helping you to choose the right mat for your kitchen in no time at all. 

To make your life just a little bit easier, we have created this blog post to get you up to speed on everything you need to know about kitchen mats. From what they are and our best sellers, to how to clean them and where to find them on our website, we’ve got you covered. 

 

What Are Kitchen Mats?

A kitchen mat is special health and safety matting designed to address the pain points and risk areas of a commercial kitchen. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, are typically made from rubber, and can significantly increase the safety of the workplace. 

They will typically be used in large kitchens - the kind that you will find in restaurants, pubs and hotels. Domestic kitchens, like the one in your home, are on a much smaller scale and are far less busy, so don’t have the same associated risks, or health and safety standards to which they need to comply. This means that if you want a mat for your home, you have greater freedom of choice. 

As our kitchen mats are typically for commercial applications, there are many performance features that you need to consider. Does your mat need to be grease-proof, so that it does not degrade or curl up at the edges over time? Should it allow liquids and debris to fall through or be contained on the mat? How about it being anti-microbial to stop germs and odours forming? There are several factors to take into account, which is why we’ve collected our favourite restaurant mats, so that you have a very clear place to start. 

The Comfort Flow Anti-Microbial Rubber Mat is both non-slip and anti-fatigue; the nitrile rubber mat is grease-proof and anti-microbial, and contains flow-through holes which make it really easy to drain spillages and food debris. 

Another best-seller is the Superscrape Non Slip Rubber Mat. It is bi-level, with raised rubber nubs, and is also perfect for areas that may be at risk of grease splashes and overflows. This is because of it’s dam system, which ensures liquids are contained on the mat, so they don’t spill onto surrounding floors. 

 

What Is The Point Of A Kitchen Mat?

Some of the biggest dangers in a commercial kitchen are posed by slips, trips and falls, by tiredness and by the aches and pains that you experience when standing on hard floors for long periods of time. All of these threats can be neutralised with the strategic placement of a kitchen mat.

• Slips, Trips And Falls: Due to the nature of commercial kitchens, there is a significant risk of slipping, tripping and falling. This is because of leaks, water spills, oil spills, dropped food and the general busy, hustle and bustle of the environment. It all comes with the territory, but a kitchen mat can also greatly reduce these risks. As a knock-on effect, it can also reduce the risk of other kinds of kitchen injuries. 

• Tiredness: We’ve already mentioned just how busy a commercial kitchen can be, which is why tiredness can be hugely dangerous. Tiredness leads to lack of concentration, to silly mistakes and to decreased productivity; within a busy kitchen, this can lead to all kinds of accidents. An anti-fatigue kitchen mat can boost circulation and blood flow to the brain, keeping everyone bright eyed and bushy-tailed. 

• Aches And Pains: Standing on a hard floor for a long time can cause your feet and legs to ache. Over a prolonged period, it can also cause muscle stiffness, strain and a variety of other injuries. A kitchen mat can counteract these symptoms by alleviating the stress on your body - no more discomfort and no more additional injuries as a result!

A kitchen mat makes your workplace safer, and ensures that your employees are operating within optimal conditions - for their safety, their productivity and their overall enjoyment of the working environment. It can also help you to comply with relevant regulations. A commercial kitchen needs to adhere to both hygiene requirements and safety standards, and a kitchen mat can help you to do all of this and more. 

Just some of the things that you need to be aware of in a commercial kitchen include: 

• Cleanliness

• Heat Resistance 

• Toxic Materials

• Drainage 

• Safety 

Most kitchen mats can help you to tick all of these boxes, and to do so without compromising each other. 

 

Are Kitchen Mats Necessary?

While kitchen mats aren’t a legal requirement, and so aren’t technically necessary, they are hugely beneficial. They boost safety and comfort, while being cost-effective, durable and long lasting. This means that investing in such a mat, especially one of our acclaimed restaurant mats, is an investment into your current and future workforce. Depending on the mat you choose, and how well you look after it, it can take pride of place within your commercial kitchen for years to come. 

Kitchen mats can be:

• Anti-fatigue 

• Anti-slip

• Anti-microbial 

These benefits are no coincidence - they perfectly align with the various performance features of our matting. At Mats4U, we strive to ensure that our customers have a smooth and streamlined shopping experience, which is why we have divided all of our mats into a variety of categories; whether you want to search by feature, application or material, we’ve got you covered. 

 

Are Kitchen Mats Cleaned Every Day?

Once you’ve purchased your kitchen mat, it is important to take care of it properly. This ensures that it can stand the test of time and continue to perform well, without succumbing to the wear and tear that it is guaranteed to be subject to. 

When trying to clean your kitchen mat, we recommend that you brush it daily with a firm-bristled brush. This will allow you to remove any dirt and debris, so that the mat can continue to perform effectively. It can be useful to lift up sections of the mat, especially if it is one with holes, to brush out any collections of dirt - especially if there is a chance that food has been spilled there. After all, you don’t want to grow mould or attract vermin!

We would also suggest that your mat is regularly cleaned with water, and a high pressure hose can work well here. It will blast off any long-lasting stains, without compromising the integrity of the mat. A little detergent will help to ensure that it is squeaky clean, great smelling and no longer a threat to the health of your kitchen. 

 

Kitchen Safety With Mats4U

Ready to invest in a kitchen mat and take employee health and safety to the next level? Then you’re in the right place. At Mats4U, we have been supplying matting solutions for domestic, commercial and industrial applications for over 25 years. We are dedicated to going the extra mile for every single one of our customers; whether you require advice based on a wealth of relevant industry experience, free samples to get a good sense of what you’re looking for, or something else entirely - we are confident that we can help.

For further information on all things matting, head to our blog. We regularly post informative and educational posts, specifically written to answer your questions and offer solutions to problems that you haven’t even considered yet.

And if you would like to speak to a member of our friendly, professional and customer-first team, then please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Contact us today by completing an online form, emailing [email protected] or phoning 0121 313 6748. We can’t wait to hear from you.