Food safety training and foodservice employees' knowledge and behavior.

TLDR

Food safety training is considered a public‑health safeguard, but its effectiveness remains uncertain. The study sampled 31 restaurants across three Midwestern states, surveying 402 employees before and after training on knowledge and practices related to cross‑contamination, personal hygiene, and time‑temperature control. Training significantly increased overall food‑safety knowledge and compliance, especially handwashing, yet improved knowledge alone did not always translate into better behavior.

Abstract

A peer-reviewed article SUMMARY Statistics show that 59% of foodborne illnesses are traced to restaurant operations. Food safety training has been identified as a way to assure public health, yet evidence supporting the effectiveness of training has been inconclusive. A systematic random sample of 31 restaurants in three midwestern states was selected to assess the effect of training on food safety knowledge and behavior. A total of 402 employees (242 pre- training and 160 post-training) participated in this study. Pre- and post-training assessments were conducted on knowledge and behavior related to three key food safety practices: cross contamination, poor personal hygiene, and time/temperature abuse. Overall knowledge ( P ≤ .05) and compliance with standards of behavior ( ≤ .001) improved significantly between pre- and post-training. When each practice was examined independently, only handwashing knowledge ( P ≤ .001) and behavior ( ≤ .001) significantly improved. Results indicated that training can improve knowledge and behaviors, but knowledge alone does not always improve behaviors.