An assessment of the status of prerequisite and HACCP program implementation in Iowa restaurants

The safety of food served in restaurants should be of major concern to both restaurateurs and consumers. If unsafe food is served, there is the potential for widespread illness and even death. Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) programs are a means to assure that the food served is safe, yet little is known about the extent to which HACCP and related prerequisite programs are used in restaurants. The purpose of this research was to determine the extent to which prerequisite and HACCP programs are implemented in Iowa restaurants. Potential barriers to implementing food safety practices also were assessed. A questionnaire was developed to identify food safety practices related to HACCP and prerequisite programs, training needs, and barriers to implementing food safety practices. A random sample of 800 restaurants was selected from the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals database. Accounting for those returned incomplete due to wrong addresses or because the restaurant was out-of-business (110), the sample size was reduced to 690. Of the 690 usable questionnaires, 131 were returned for a response rate of 19%. SPSS 10.0 for Windows was used for data analysis. Approximately 8% of the restaurant manager\u27s indicated that they have a comprehensive HACCP plan in place. The majority of the prerequisite programs were not implemented. The results of multiple linear regression indicated that having an employee with the responsibility for overseeing food safety was positively related to the number of food safety practices implemented. Among restaurant manager\u27s characteristics, females were more likely to implement food safety practices than their male counterparts. Additionally, more educated managers were more likely to have food safety programs implemented. This research suggests assigning specific responsibility for food safety to an employee increases the number of food safety practices implemented in restaurants. Also, educational levels of potential managers are important to look at in the hiring process, because those that have a higher educational attainment are more likely implement food safety practices