Food Protection Trends - October 2011 - (Page 620)

Copyright© 2011, International Association for Food Protection 6200 Aurora Ave., Suite 200W, Des Moines, IA 50322-2864 Food Protection Trends, Vol. 31, No. 10, Pages 620–630 Mitigating Cross Contamination in Four Retail Foodservice Sectors CATHERINE H. STROHBEHN,1* PAOLA PAEZ,1 JEANNIE SNEED2 and JANELL MEYER1 1 Iowa State University, 31 MacKay Hall, Ames, IA 50011–1121, USA; 2Kansas State University, 104 Justin Hall, Manhattan, KS 66506-1400, USA INTRODUCTION ABSTRACT The purposes of this study were to identify food-handling practices that contribute to cross contamination and to assess whether intervention strategies mitigated the occurrence of these practices. A convenience sample of sixteen retail foodservice operations from four sectors of industry participated in the 3-year project. Data were collected during two visits in year one and a third visit in year three, following a 1-year intervention period. Observational data were collected using three structured forms: a food flow form; a food practices assessment form; and a validated handwashing observation form. Temperatures of cold deli meat were tracked with a data logger. Intervention activities focused on mitigation strategies and included formal training as well as provision of tools and supplies. The food flow step with the highest number of crosscontamination opportunities was preparing/thawing, followed by lack of standard operating procedures for cleaning and sanitizing. Food safety practice scores improved between groups pre- and post-interventions. Data showed reduction in times hands should have been washed, and some improvements in handwashing frequency and procedures. Mild temperature abuse of cold meats was noted both pre- and post-interventions. Findings indicate that intervention efforts were partially effective, but further investigation of effective delivery of food safety messages and assessments of the workplace food safety culture is needed. A peer-reviewed article * Author for correspondence: Phone: +1 515.294.3527; Fax: +1 515.294.6364 E-mail: cstrohbe@iastate.edu Recent estimates show that 31 major pathogens caused 9.4 million episodes of foodborne illness each year (17), and over half of the reported foodborne illnesses originated in retail foodservice establishments (5). The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (25, 26) evaluated risk factors for foodborne illness through observations in hospitals, nursing homes, elementary schools, fast food and full service restaurants, and retail foodservices (delis, meat and poultry, seafood, and produce) in 1998 and 2003 and identified three categories of risk factors for which there was a high rate of noncompliance: improper holding/time and temperature; poor personal hygiene; and contaminated equipment/ prevention of contamination. Bean, Goulding, Griffin, and Ivey (3) studied CDC reports of foodborne outbreaks for the period 1988–1992 and found improper holding temperatures of foods and poor personal hygiene of food workers reported in 59% and 36% of outbreaks, respectively. The Report of the FDA Retail Food Program Database of Foodborne Illness Risk Factors (25) identified cold holding of potentially hazardous foods and ready-to-eat foods as one of four practices and behaviors for which the out-of-compliance rate exceeded 40%. Proper handwashing was the practice with the highest out-of-compliance rate for all facility types in both FDA studies (25, 26), ranging from a 34% noncompliance rate for hospitals to 73% for full-service restaurants. Higher com- 620 FOOD PROTECTION TRENDS | OCTOBER 2011 http://www.foodprotection.org/files/food-protection-trends/Oct-11-Strohbehn.pdf

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - October 2011

Food Protection Trends - October 2011
Table of Contents
Sustaining Members
Food for Thought from Your President
Commentary from the Executive Director
Beliefs and Perceptions of School Foodservice Personnel about Following a HACCP-based Program
Mitigating Cross Contamination in Four Retail Foodservice Sectors
General Interest Paper – Food Safety and Spoilage: Courts Favor Reasonable Expectations of Food Companies for Product Loss
New Members
What’s Happening in Food Safety
Industry Products
Coming Events
Advertising Index
Journal of Food Protection Table of Contents
Membership Application

Food Protection Trends - October 2011