Commercial kitchen cleaning certification necessary

BOSTON — In an effort to make commercial kitchens safer for those who work in and clean them, the City of Boston is making it mandatory that every commercial kitchen cleaning contractor will have to pass an exam, have 500 hours of experience and register with the city beginning May 14, according to WBZ-TV.

One key area the exam will stress is cleaning grease out of air ducts, where as much as 40 percent of the grease generated by kitchens ultimately ends up, the story stated.

Boston Fire Department Chief Frank Kodzis said: "The ultimate danger is someone dying from something in a restaurant. A lot of the system is out of sight and out of mind, and assuring that part of the system is clean is critical. They can't just go in to clean the hood. They're responsible for the entire system from the fryolator to where it leaves the building."

The push for mandatory certification was heavily influenced by the tragic loss of two Boston firefighters two years ago who perished while battling a grease fire, the story noted.

As of now, only six people have completed the entire education and registration process to clean commercial kitchens in Boston, the story added.

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