S19 - Cleaning and Sanitation for Retail Food Safety - Identifying the Issues

Glen 203-204
Organizers: Dale Grinstead and O. Peter Snyder
Convenors: Dale Grinstead and O. Peter Snyder

1:30 Risk Associated with Improper Cleaning and Sanitation at the Food Retail Level — Donald Schaffner, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ, USA

2:00 C&S for Grocery Retail — Sharon P. Wood, H-E-B, San Antonio, TX, USA

2:30 C&S for Food Service Retailers — C. Harold King, Chick-fil-A Food Safety, Atlanta, GA, USA

3:00 Break

3:30 Retail Regulatory Update — Shirley Bohm, FDA, College Park, MD, USA

4:00 Retail Sanitary Design — Harry Grenawitzke, National Sanitation Foundation, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

4:30 Retail C&S Training — Ralph Neller, JohnsonDiversey, Sharonville, OH, USA

Abstract
Much of the focus of food safety efforts from government and academia in the past has been on food production and processing. Comparatively little attention has been given to food safety at the retail level. Cleaning and Sanitation (C&S) are critical elements of any plan to prevent foodborne illness and are as important at food retail as they are to the food processor. A good C&S program helps prevent cross contamination, restricts environmental conditions in which microorganisms can grow, and creates a safer more appealing environment for customers and employees. Although the importance of C&S is generally well recognized by the food industry, there are many practical barriers to implementation of a strong C&S program particularly at the retail level. These can include high employee turnover, a comparatively uncontrolled environment, inadequate understanding of the importance of C&S on the part of store management and the operators responsible for C&S activities, varying regulations, poor facility and equipment design, and difficulties in developing good training programs. This symposium will highlight the current situation and best practices for C&S in the food retail environment. It will focus on issues, barriers, and concerns faced by the food retail industry. Topics covered will include an introduction to the grocery and food service retail environments and present day C&S best practices and solutions for those environments, a retail regulatory update, equipment and facility design issues associated with the food retail environment, and some of the challenges and opportunities associated with training of food retail workers.