Development and Piloting of a Food Safety Audit Tool for the Domestic Environment

Developing a Messaging Graphic for Storage Times of Refrigerated Ready to Eat (RTE) Foods for a Consumer Food Safety Health Campaign

This study developed and evaluated risk communication messages for ready to eat (RTE) foods targeted towards consumer storage practices in a food safety health campaign. Concepts were determined from a fractional factorial design of five categories of attributes potentially present in health promotion: title, message, graphic, slogan, and icon. Consumers viewed a subset of concepts and scored how useful the concept was in remembering to throw away RTE foods that were stored too long. Regression analysis determined which combinations of message attributes were most likely to result in using the information to throw out foods, which could help prevent foodborne illness. Findings showed that for this type of information, a graphic is a critical element for the printed schematic. The slogan (i.e., a short statement similar to a jingle or tag-line in a commercial) may be important to consumers, but the icon was not important.

Prevalence of Pathogens and Indicator Organisms in Home Kitchens and Correlation with Unsafe Food Handling Practices and Conditions

Despite education efforts, consumers often practice unsafe food handling and storage behaviors. Little is known about how these unsafe practices contribute to contamination of the home kitchen with foodborne pathogens. In addition, only a limited number of studies have examined the role of the kitchen as a reservoir for pathogens. The purpose of this study was to characterize microbial contamination and foodborne pathogens found in home kitchens and determine whether contamination was significantly associated with unsafe or unsanitary conditions observed in the kitchen. Swab samples were collected from food contact and preparation surfaces in homes (n = 100) in Philadelphia, PA. The samples were tested for coliforms, fecal coliforms, Escherichia coli , Staphylococcus aureus , Salmonella, Campylobacter, and Listeria. Fecal coliforms were found in 44% of homes (most often in samples from kitchen sinks, sponges, and dishcloths), and E. coli was found in 15% of homes (mostly in samples from kitchen sinks). Nearly half (45%) of the homes tested positive for a foodborne pathogen, and 12% had multiple pathogens present in the kitchen. S. aureus was isolated from 39% of homes, most often from countertops and refrigerator door handles. Listeria spp., including L. monocytogenes and L. innocua , were present in 15% of homes, most often in samples from refrigerator meat drawers. C. jejuni was isolated from 3% of homes. Contamination with Listeria was significantly associated with higher refrigerator temperatures. The contamination of surfaces with fecal coliforms and S. aureus was significantly associated with a lack of cleaning materials: dish soap and paper or cloth towels in the kitchen, and any type of towel in the nearest bathroom. The contamination of a sponge or dishcloth with either fecal coliforms or S. aureus was predictive of other surfaces in the kitchen having the same contamination, indicating that sponges and dishcloths are both reservoirs and vectors for bacteria in the kitchen.