Bake Sales
Bake sales are a popular fundraising event many people host to raise money for charity, so if you want to know how to plan a bake sale, read this guide which includes a checklist of things to do and the guidelines you need to be aware of to make sure your bake sale is a success.
Checklist
Before the Event
Choose who will receive fundraised amount (which charity or groups own funds)
Book a space on campus suitable to run a Bake Sale via Planon
Complete a Risk Assessment using the linked template. Share the completed template with g.ward@yusu.org
Complete an EMF
Familiarise everyone associated with the baking/bake sale with the following documents:
Ensure everyone follows the above that is involved in the Bake Sale.
Advertise the Bake Sale.
On the day
Follow guidance for safe transportation of all baked goods
Display food allergens disclaimer and label the food
Collect donations (online donation page/cash/SUMUP)
After the event
Deposit donations into YUSU Finance (cash only)
Make donation to the charity after reimbursing for any costs for ingredients
Share how much you've raised
Top Tips
Find out what everyone else is baking, so your sale is varied and you don't end up with too much of the same thing.
Consider a competition, you could host a contest for the most creative idea, best decorations or tastiest cake.
Choose a theme, if it's a national holiday or event coming up, you could consider a theme which will also help promote your bake sale.
Consider presentation, how can your cakes catch people's eye and make people want to buy them
Take pictures and advertise on the day, lots of people might not put it in the calendar, but great photos might entice some people in to buy.
Look at different options for payment. If people are less likely to be carrying cash, is there a way they could pay via an online giving page link or with a SUMUP Card reader.
Food Hygiene
It is not essential to receive certified Food Hygiene training or to be registered with Environmental Health for one-off bake sales.
But, it is extremely important that you practice and maintain safe food handling, considering personal hygiene, allergens, safe storage and transportation. Read the following information below to ensure your bake sale remains a low-risk event if food hygiene is prioritised:
Personal Hygiene
Always wash your hands before handling ingredients
Wear clean clothes that will not give rise to contamination of foods (consider removing jewellery, wool clothing)
Do not attempt to prepare any food for public consumption if you are suffering from skin conditions, coughs and colds or sickness bugs.
The Kitchen
Make sure food contact surfaces and utensils are thoroughly cleaned before preparing food
Do not use work surfaces or utensils for raw foods and then for cooked foods without cleaning between.
Make sure all utensils are undamaged, and all equipment is PAT tested
Ingredients
Make sure ingredients are of good quality
Make sure the ingredients are sourced from reputable places (supermarkets or direct suppliers)
Do not use food that is out of date (past it's 'best before' or 'use by'
Do not use raw eggs in any 'ready to eat' products (such as icing) or anything that requires chilling during display (such as cream icing for cream cakes).
Safe Storage and Transportation
Baked goods will be served at an ambient temperature, so don't serve anything that needs to be chilled.
Keep food covered to protect from contamination such as hairs, dirty hands, cleaning agents.
Transporting and Handling Baked Goods
Transport in a clean, food-grade, air-tight container.
When handling baked goods, use tongs or a clean cake slice if possible.
Labelling and Allergens
You will need to display details of any allergens involved in the food you are serving, whether they are ingredients or used in cooking (eg: oils).
Allergens
There are 14 key allergens to identify if present, the most common food allergens and products that be used in the production of cakes and biscuits are:
Cereals containing gluten (Wheat, rye, barley, and oats), Eggs, Lupin (Lupin flour and seeds usually found in flour or as seeds), Milk, Tree-Grown Nuts (Cashews, almonds, hazelnuts. Be sure to include any derivatives which may include nuts, such as ice cream, marzipan, nut sauces, or chocolate, Peanuts (Different from tree nuts), Sesame Seeds and Soya
Details of these should be clearly listed with the foods, and anyone serving or otherwise involved in running the event should be aware of what ingredients are present in the food.
Questions?
Jasmine Pledger, Student Citizenship and Employability Development Coordinator - j.pledger@yusu.org
Geoff Ward, Safety and Logistics Manager - g.ward@yusu.org