The quality of your ingredients directly influences the success of your establishment. When your menu consists of fresh, safely prepared cuisine, your customers will return again and again to enjoy yet another meal. You play a major role in the quality of your menu items, but food safety starts long before the product reaches your kitchen.

It's a debate that has raged in foodservice circles for years and centers on the question of whether hand washing alone is effective in preventing foodborne illness. One side believes that hand washing is sufficient. The other side believes that proper hand washing is not being enforced and that a barrier, such as single-use gloves or utensils, is required to protect the food. Unfortunately, it's a circular argument.

The restaurant industry is the second largest private sector employer in the United States, according to the National Restaurant Association, with approximately one in 10 people in the country working in a restaurant. Restaurants have a higher proportion of younger workers, hourly workers and immigrant workers than other industries, and the penalties for noncompliance with legal standards are high.

It's time to look ahead and make some educated guesses about how foodservice will evolve in 2012. While current retail shopping patterns appear strong, consumers are still slow to return to prerecession spending habits, especially when dining out. Recent surveys show that 63% of consumers believe it is too expensive to dine out regularly. These five trends for 2012 just may help drive business.