Rodent droppings, cockroaches and a build-up of rubbish has led four central Sydney (that’s in Australia) restaurants to be prosecuted, fined, and named and shamed on a government register designed to prompt businesses to clean up their act.

The New South Wales Food Authority publishes lists of food outlets that have breached or are alleged to have breached state food safety laws.

NSW Primary Industries Minister Steve Whan said in a statement some of the offences included "unpalatable acts" such as food, waste and grease build-up, and the failure to eradicate and prevent pests.

In some cases, live cockroaches, rodent droppings, smears and hairs were observed throughout the premises.
 

There were several empty tables around the garden at a Shake Shack in New York City the other night, and that, according to Grub Street New York, was because at least three mice kept emerging from the plants and approaching tables like beggars.

Three or four parties cluelessly sat down only to notice the furry fiends and either moved their tables away or scampered off with their tails between their legs. Of course, this isn’t anywhere near as scandalous as a chef caught tonguing toads; Shake Shack is located in a public park, after all, and mice have been spotted before.
 

Rich Stytzer, state board member and immediate past president of the Westchester/Rockland Chapter of the New York Restaurant Association and vice president of Antun’s of Westchester Catering in Elmsford made the following points in Westfair Online. My comments follow.

“The New York State Restaurant Association (NYSRA) and its members believe food safety is of the utmost importance and take steps every day to educate members and workers about proper food handling techniques. NYSRA holds ServSafe training classes throughout the state to educate members, offers products and materials to train employees and has even lobbied in favor of mandatory foodhandler certifications to better protect its members, the industry and the customers.”

ServSafe is nice but does it really work? Is it as effective as those signs that say, ‘Employees Must Wash Hands?’ And if the industry wanted mandatory foodhandler certifications, it would already exist – for everyone, not just a manager.

“NYSRA’s concerns about this letter-grading legislation lie with the assumption that letter grades are associated with improved compliance by restaurants and will lead to a decline in foodborne illness.”

Those assumptions are full of holes. That’s why I argue restaurant inspection disclosure is really about improving the microbial food safety culture and awareness among patrons and staff. Citizens also have a right to information collected through the tax dollars.

“NYSRA believes educating operators, rather than fining or publicly humiliating them, is a better course of action.”

How, where and when will this ‘better education’ happen?

“The idea of using letter grades for restaurant inspections is not widely accepted as a means to improve cleanliness or as an inspection method at all. In 1993, the Food and Drug Administration removed scoring from the model food code citing problems with the system.”

No one said letter grades is an inspection method, and if they did, they were wrong. Grades are a tool to promote food safety issues and awareness.

“As recently as 2008, the FDA was asking for research to evaluate and assess scoring methodologies. The national trend among the majority of public health professionals generally has been to avoid the use of scores or grades, which are considered to be misleading and inaccurate.”

We’ve been doing the research. Got a reference for that statement about the majority of public health types, or are you just speaking on their behalf?

“In a 2004 study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it was concluded after studying more than 167,000 restaurant inspection reports, that there was no difference in average letter grades given to restaurants experiencing outbreaks compared to those that were not.”

Like any study, there were limitations. Restaurant inspection disclosure is about enhancing the food safety conversation throughout the public and with food service staff. Our own research (in press) has found embarrassment to be a powerful motivator among restaurant managers.

For those still wondering, here’s a review paper discussing the pros and cons of disclosure systems.

Filion, K. and Powell, D.A. 2009. The use of restaurant inspection disclosure systems as a means of communicating food safety information. Journal of Foodservice 20: 287-297.

Abstract

The World Health Organization estimates that up to 30% of individuals in developed countries become ill from food or water each year. Up to 70% of these illnesses are estimated to be linked to food prepared at foodservice establishments. Consumer confidence in the safety of food prepared in restaurants is fragile, varying significantly from year to year, with many consumers attributing foodborne illness to foodservice. One of the key drivers of restaurant choice is consumer perception of the hygiene of a restaurant. Restaurant hygiene information is something consumers desire, and when available, may use to make dining decisions.
 

A new survey sponsored by ShelfLifeAdvice.com, a food storage reference website that estimates U.S. consumers unnecessarily discard billions of dollars of food a year, found that three in four U.S. consumers believe certain foods are unsafe to eat after the date on the packaging has passed.

But, according to Andy Miller of msnbc.com, experts say that if most foods are stored properly, they can be safe for days after the ‘use by’ date.

Ira Allen, a Food and Drug Administration spokesman, said the food date does not equate to safety, adding,

“If something is past its date, and stored properly, often it’s OK."

Michael Doyle, director of the University of Georgia’s Center for Food Safety, said foods that can last far beyond an expiration date with proper storage include flour, sugar, rice and cake mixes, adding.

“There’s no reason that dry goods wouldn’t be safe except if it becomes wet.’’
 

Line-ups for post hepatatis A IgG shots are expected at Siler City, NC Burger King this weekend after a food handler who worked on August 2 and 3rd has tested positive for the virus.

The Chatham County Public Health Department issued a statement late Friday urging patrons of the restaurant, at 1712 E. 11th St., to be vaccinated for hepatitis A.

Immunizations will be offered for free at the health department, at 1000 S. 10th Ave., Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. and Monday and Tuesday between 8:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.

The vaccine can prevent infection up to 14 days after exposure, so those who ate at the Burger King should get an injection by Aug. 17, the health department said.

If I was running a food business, hep A would scare me the most. It often turns out like this: no illnesses linked to the food handler yet (and maybe the individual is the best handwasher out there) but there will still be hundreds of people lining up resulting in pretty bad PR.

Here's an old food safety infosheet detailing a hep A outbreak at a McDonalds in Illinois last year.

In the aftermath of the ESPN reports on less-than-desirable conditions at stadium and arena eateries across North American, spokesthingy John Althardt of Lucas Oil Stadium – that’s where Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts play – told WIBC,

"Everything is being done to ensure that the events and the food service at Lucas Oil Stadium are all what we expect them to be, and we'll continue to do so."

Are they really doing everything? Are they using new food messages and new media to really establish a culture of food safety amongst all employees? Are they posting food safety infosheets in common employee areas? Are they creating a system of rewards for good food safety behavior, telling sick employees to stay home from work, and that food accidentally mishandled is thrown out?

Walk the talk, Althardt.
 

The reporters at the Rockford Register Star in Illinois probably meant well, with a feature about the important role of local food inspectors, but they sorta ruin it by beginning the story with:

If you haven’t grown it, cleaned it and cooked your food yourself, you’re eating at your own risk.

It is entirely possible to grow food, and clean it and cook it all by yourself – and completely mess things up and make people barf.

Back to the story, Winnebago County Health Department sanitarians Gail Goldman and Karen Hobbs and four colleagues work to cut the risk of foodborne illness by checking out more than 1,600 establishments such as restaurants, grocery stores, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, gas stations, concession stands and other places offering food and drinks for public consumption.

In 2009, the Health Department’s sanitarians performed 5,109 inspections the most important part of which, Goldman and Hobbs said, was education.

Hobbs said the last thing that made her think she has seen everything on the job was “a towel used to wipe a cutting board and then used to wipe a face. There was quite a bit of education going on that day.”

I spoke to a room full of restaurant managers yesterday and shared stories about outbreaks. Stats are great, but I find that what helps me connect best with front-line staff are the stories of real people like Mason Jones and Stephanie Smith, and their families, who have to deal with the consequences of foodborne illness everyday. We see at least a couple of outbreaks reported publicly each week and while not each have tragic endings, there are thousands of people affected.

Earlier this week I saw Rob Tauxe from CDC talk about how through Pulsenet, CDC sees on average, around 25 clusters of foodborne illness pathogens every week. Many of those outbreaks go unsolved due to a lack of data and resources Today CDC released the 2007 Outbreaknet report detailing the trends on almost 1100 foodborne illness outbreaks that year.

A CDC press release states:

"Knowing more about what types of foods and foodborne agents have caused outbreaks can help guide public health and the food industry in developing measures to effectively control and prevent infections and help people stay healthy," said Chris Braden, acting director of the CDC's Division of Foodborne, Waterborne and Environmental Diseases.

BBC News reports that the Fat Duck restaurant, owned by chef Heston Blumenthal, has been named the U.K.'s best restaurant for the third year in a row by the Good Food Guide and described as producing "world-beating dishes for the bedazzled throngs."

The guide, compiled by consumer group Which?, should be more discerning on behalf of consumers, like the 529 who were left barfing with norovirus after dining at the Duc.

The tasting menu includes a course called Sound of the Sea, during which the diner eats smoked fish, edible "sand" and "seaweed" while listening to seagulls on an iPod.

I’m going to hurl.