Assessment of Food Safety Risk

Abstract

Abstract Food service operations vary in their exposure to food safety risks. The Marion County, Indiana Health Department employs a system of risk assessment in determining the frequency of annual restaurant inspections to obtain an optimal balance between public safety and a maximization of departmental resources. Risk assessment classification criteria currently stem from the Food and Drug Administration Food Code without consideration of restaurant type. The utility of the current system of risk assessment was examined to see if restaurant type should be considered in the process. The analysis revealed significant differences in the number of health inspection violations among restaurant types, supporting the study's proposal. Of note, full-service chain restaurants had more violations than full-service independent operations and cafeterias had a greater number of violations than all other restaurant types combined.