Grocery store associates in the deli-bakery departments serve and prepare an increasing amount of ready-to-eat foods. This increases the need for a detailed, effective food safety training program in retail grocery establishments to prevent food borne illness. This research examines food safety knowledge, training preferences, needs, and current practices of grocery stores deli-bakery employees in Southwest and Southern Virginia. This research had two phases. Phase I: employees completed a thirty-four question needs assessment survey concerning background, food safety training needs, preferences and knowledge. Phase 2: 15 employees (from phase 1 locations) food behaviors were observed for approximately six hours each (89.05 hours total). Observational data collection focused on glove use, cross-contamination, and hand washing. The results showed that most grocery food handlers desired hands-on, interactive and one-on-one training that occurs frequently, but is short: less than two hours in length. Overall, most grocery food handlers had general safe food handling knowledge; however, the observational behavior data indicates behaviors do not reflect their knowledge. Greater than 95% understanding was found on the subjects of hand washing and glove use; however, these items were observed practiced incorrectly the most with bare hand contact with ready-to-eat foods and lack of hand washing prior to glove use. The creation of short, hands-on or interactive trainings for retail grocery food handlers that focuses on changing food handling and preparation behaviors may be more effective than current training. / Master of Science in Life Sciences

Master of Science / Department: Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology / Douglas Powell / Folklorama in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada is a 14-day temporary food service event that explores the many different cultural realms of food, food preparation, and entertainment. The ethnic nature and diversity of foods prepared within each pavilion presents a unique problem for food inspectors as each culture prepares food in their own very unique way. In 2010, the Russian pavilion at Folklorama was implicated in a foodborne outbreak of E.coli O157 causing 37 illnesses and 18 hospitalizations. Both the Department of Health and Folklorama Board of Directors realized a need for implementation of a food safety delivery program that would be more effective than a simple 2-hour food safety course delivered via PowerPoint slides. Until 2011, the 2-hour food safety course delivered to event co-ordinators and food operators for Folklorama pavilions was not mandatory. The course is now mandatory in 2011 for all Folklorama pavilions. Five randomly chosen pavilions were trained on-site, in their work environment, focusing on critical control points specific to their menu. A control group (five pavilions) did not receive on-site food safety training. Critical infractions noted on standardized food inspection reports were assessed. Results of the current study suggest no statistically significant difference in food inspection scores between the trained group and control group. Results imply that the 2-hour food safety course delivered via slides was sufficient to pass public health inspections.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Hospitality Management and Dietetics / Deborah Canter / Junehee Kwon / Foodborne illnesses are a challenge, especially in ethnic restaurants partly because of differences in food handling practices and ethnic cultures. Chinese restaurants, representing the largest number of ethnic restaurants in the U.S., have unique food safety challenges. This study investigated variables including Chinese cultural values (CCVs) that influence U.S. Chinese restaurateurs’ behavioral intention regarding food safety training. The qualitative study, individual interviews with 20 Chinese restaurateurs, found 17 major CCVs that are important to participants. Most participants felt satisfied with previous health inspections, but several expressed difficulty with understanding health inspectors’ instructions and the reports. A limited number of participants provided food safety training mainly because it was required by law. Lack of money, time, labor, energy, and perceived needs for food safety training were major obstacles to providing food safety training in Chinese restaurants. The quantitative study assessed behavioral intention to provide food safety training and the influencing factors including CCVs using the instrument developed based on the qualitative study. Sample included 500 Chinese restaurateurs across the U.S., and 261 provided usable data. Among 17 CCVs, respondents perceived “courtesy” (6.95±0.24), “respect” (6.87±0.47), and “harmony” (6.85±0.41) as most important. The opinions of customers (5.74±1.71), family members (5.73±1.60), and business partners (5.49±1.57) were considered most important. Barriers to providing food safety training included employees’ physical exhaustion (5.89±1.58), employees’ learning capabilities (4.80±1.97), and financial resources (4.56±2.19). Of five CCV factors identified, CCVs pertaining to customer relations (β=0.133, p<.05) and interpersonal relations (β=0.320, p<.001) were significantly associated with behavioral intention to provide food safety training. Additional factors influencing food safety training intention were, personal influence (Fchange=3.98, p<.05), perceived barriers (Fchange=6.42, p<.05), and past experiences (Fchange=21.78, p<.001). Among participants, the males (t =2.97, p<.05) valued customer relations, whereas the females (t =5.52, p<.001) valued interpersonal relations. Chinese restaurateurs with bachelor’s degrees or higher (F=5.905, p<.01) had greater intentions to provide food safety training than others. Manual-based food safety training (6.17±1.23) in Chinese (6.13±1.33) was preferred by the respondents. Future research should evaluate if recommendations from this study have positive influences on food safety training at Chinese restaurants.

Restaurant managers complete certification in food safety in order to ensure that food is handled and prepared in a manner that decreases risk factors associated with food-borne illness. However, the literature has been inconclusive concerning the connection between manager certification and the incidence of critical food-safety violations. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationship between the presence or absence of a certified food safety manager (CFSM) and the number of risk factors cited on food inspection reports and the food safety score. In addition, this study was designed to determine whether operation type (i.e., chain vs. independently owned) has an impact on the number of risk factors and food safety score. This study was an analysis of 2013 data from 1,547 restaurants in North, Central, and South Georgia health districts using a 2-tailed independent-sample t test. Restaurants with a CFSM had significantly more risk factors cited on food safety inspections and lower food safety scores than restaurants without a CFSM. There was also a significant difference among chain and independent restaurants. Chain restaurants had fewer risk factors cited on restaurant inspections and had higher food safety scores. In the epidemiological triangle model, breaking the chain of transmission disrupts the link among agent, host, and environment. Thus, CFSMs have the responsibility to implement food safety training programs to break the chain of transmission by identifying and correcting unsafe food practices among food workers. This study has the potential to assist managers in understanding the importance of food safety and implementing food safety training programs that decrease risk factors associated with food-borne illness. Further research is needed to explore the effectiveness of manager certification in reducing critical violations.

HACCP-based food safety programs have been widely acclaimed, accepted and implemented as an effective means of managing food safety risks. While HACCP training is a cornerstone of managing HACCP programs, there is little information about the effectiveness of HACCP training and the durability of HACCP knowledge. Findings reveal a link between involvement level in HACCP activities and the accuracy of HACCP knowledge over time. Opportunities for peer training in HACCP, irrespective of overall experience in the food industry provide favorable circumstances for maintaining accuracy of HACCP knowledge. The optimal window for engaging employees in HACCP is directly following the completion of training for achieving the minimal depletion level of content knowledge. This study further reveals that refresher training in HACCP is necessary within three years. Furthermore, training standardization organizations likely need a formal process of monitoring and maintaining HACCP trainer and trainee qualifications to ensure uniformity in HACCP programming.