KANSAS: Safe food handling labels on take-out containers can help restaurants stand apart in the marketplace, says K-State food safety expert

06.oct.09
Kansas State University
Doug Powell

MANHATTAN -- As take-out food continues to increase in popularity, new
research from Kansas State University has found that safe handling
labels can help restaurants and food providers distinguish themselves in
a competitive marketplace.
"With leftovers, people need information the moment they pull that
container or clamshell package from the fridge," said Doug Powell, a
K-State associate professor of food safety. "How long has it been in the
fridge? Is it still safe? Our approach was to provide practical
information, right on the container."
Powell, along with former graduate student Brae Surgeoner and Tanya
MacLurin of the University of Guelph in Canada, designed a safe food
handling label for take-out food after consulting numerous experts and
consumers. They then worked with 10 restaurants in Ontario to provide
food safety stickers for take-out food and subsequently interviewed
managers about the utility of the stickers.
For the purpose of this research, takeout was defined as food procured
from a casual dining restaurant -- in other words, a sit-down restaurant
-- but eaten elsewhere, including food ordered as takeout and leftover
food packaged to be taken home.
The researchers concluded that such a safe food handling label for
take-out food was a promising value-added investment for restaurant
operators as long as the stickers were used consistently and employees
supported the initiative.
"We strive to provide the right food safety message in the right
setting," Powell said. "Hand washing information should go over sinks
and the back door of toilet stalls. Food preparation information should
go in the back kitchen. Stickers with safe food handling information
should go on the clamshell containers that people take home and put in
the fridge. That's where the learning moment is."
The results are published in the October 2009 issue of Food Protection
Trends.
The abstract is below.
Assessing management perspectives of a safe food-handling label for
casual dining take-out food
01.oct.09
Food Protection Trends, Vol 29, No 10, pages 620-625
Brae V. Surgeoner, Tanya MacLaurin, Douglas A. Powell
Abstract
Faced with the threat of food safety litigation in a highly competitive
industry, foodservice establishments must take proactive steps to avoid
foodborne illness. Consumer demand for convenience food, coupled with
evidence that consumers do not always engage in proper food-safety
practices, means that take-out food from casual dining restaurant
establishments can lead to food safety concerns. A prescriptive safe
food-handling label was designed through a Delphi-type exercise. A
purposive sample of 10 foodservice managers was then used to evaluate
the use of the label on take-out products. Semi-structured in-depth
interviews focused on the level of concern for food safety, the value of
labelling take-out products, perceived effectiveness of the provided
label, and barriers to implementing a label system. Interviews were
audiotaped and transcribed, and the data was interpreted using content
analysis to identify and develop overall themes and sub-themes related
to the areas of inquiry. It was found that labeling is viewed as a
beneficial marketing tool by which restaurants can be differentiated
from their competitors based on their proactive food safety stance.