Food Protection Trends

Abstracts - November 2005

Guidelines for Conducting Listeria monocytogenes Challenge Testing of Foods

Consumer Reaction and Interest in Using Food Thermometers When Cooking Small or Thin Meat Items

Food Safety Knowledge, Attitudes and Behavior of Irish Teenagers

Guidelines for Conducting Listeria monocytogenes Challenge Testing of Foods

Virginia N. Scott-1*, Katherine M. J. Swanson-2, Timothy A. Freier-3, W. Payton Pruett, Jr.-4, William H. Sveum-5, Paul A. Hall-6, Leslie A. Smoot-7, and Daniel G. Brown-8

1-Food Products Association (formerly National Food Processors Association), 1350 I St. NW, Suite 300, Washington, D.C. 20005, USA
2-Ecolab, Inc., 655 Lone Oak Dr., Eagan, MN 55121, USA
3-Cargill, P.O. Box 9300, MS 63, Minneapolis, MN 55440, USA
4-ConAgra Foods, Inc., 6 ConAgra Foods Dr., Omaha, NE 68102, USA (currently The Kroger Company, Cincinnati, OH)
5-Kraft Foods Global, Inc., 910 Mayer Ave., Madison, WI 53704, USA
6-Kraft Foods Global, Inc., 801 Waukegan Rd., Glenview, IL 60025, USA
7-Nestlé USA, 6625 Eiterman Rd., Dublin, OH 43017 USA
8-Hormel Foods Corp., 2 Hormel Pl., Austin, MN 55912, USA

SUMMARY
Challenge testing using Listeria monocytogenes is a useful tool for determining the ability of the organism to grow in a food, for validating the effectiveness of growth inhibitors, and for validating the degree of lethality delivered by processes intended to inactivate the organism. This document addresses factors that should be considered when designing and conducting L. monocytogenes challenge tests, including the type and number of strains of L. monocytogenes used, the inoculum level, inoculum preparation and method of inoculation, formulation of the product, delivery of a lethal treatment, incubation of samples, the length of the study and frequency of sampling, and sample analyses. An expert microbiologist should be involved in all phases of the study, especially in the design and the interpretation of results. Studies conducted according to these guidelines can be used to validate the level of reduction achieved by a lethal treatment or the level of control achieved by an antimicrobial treatment or process to assess product safety and compliance with government laws, regulations, and policies. .

Consumer Reaction and Interest in Using Food Thermometers When Cooking Small or Thin Meat Items

Sandra M. McCurdy-1, Val Hillers-2, and Sandra E. Cann-3

SUMMARY
Color is known to be an unreliable indicator of whether ground beef is safely cooked. It is recommended that consumers use a thermometer when cooking hamburger and do not rely on the internal color of the meat to insure food safety. However, fewer than 6% of consumers follow this recommendation. Consumer focus groups were used to gather information regarding attitudes about food thermometer use and suggestions for the design of effective motivational intervention materials. Prior to focus group discussions, participants read two brochures about food thermometers and used food thermometers to assess the endpoint in cooking a small meat item. For most participants, thermometer use with a hamburger, chicken breast or pork chop was a new experience, and they expressed a variety of opinions. Avoidance of foodborne illness, especially when cooking for children or elderly persons, was the major factor in favor of thermometer use. Barriers to thermometer use included lack of time, forgetfulness, laziness and lack of confidence in accurately positioning the thermometer. Participants suggested that consumers need to be informed about the disconnect between color of ground beef and safe endpoint temperature and about the usefulness of thermometers for assuring consistently high quality cooked meat by avoiding overcooking.

Food Safety Knowledge, Attitudes and Behavior of Irish Teenagers

Jennifer Tobin, Gary Henehan, and Fintan Moran
School of Food Science and Environmental Health, Faculty of Tourism and Food, Dublin Institute of Technology, Cathal Brugha Street, Dublin, Ireland

SUMMARY
Food safety malpractices in the home are thought to be responsible for a significant number of food poisoning cases. A study was carried out to investigate the level of food safety knowledge that exists among teenage consumers and to gain insight into their food- handling behavior and beliefs as well as their attitudes toward food safety. The study sought to establish whether a link existed between the socio-economic background of teenagers and their food safety knowledge and food-handling behavior. A questionnaire was distributed to two hundred teenagers (response rate of 90.5%), half of whom attended a school in which the students generally were from higher socio-economic backgrounds and the remainder of whom attended an inner city school, where students usually come from lower socio-economic backgrounds. Teenagers did not prioritize food safety as an issue that causes them excessive concern. Schools, parents and television are the principal sources of food safety information for young consumers who consider themselves to be well informed in this area. However, when asked how to determine when a whole chicken is cooked, no respondents referred to time or temperature. The majority considered washing hands prior to food preparation or consumption to be very important, yet a large proportion did not do so in school. Teenagers from more prosperous backgrounds tended to have a better knowledge of basic food safety principles than those from low socio-economic backgrounds. A significant proportion of teenagers from disadvantaged areas did not understand the term cross-contamination, nor could they identify the recommended internal temperature of a domestic refrigerator. Teenagers have a positive attitude toward food safety, but they need to be motivated to change their behavior accordingly through effective risk communication incorporating education programs tailored to their needs, including reference to their socio-economic background.