Purpose: The purpose of this study is to determine if frequency of restaurant foodborne outbreaks is associated with restaurant inspection frequency and levels of food handler training when controlling for local demographic factors.
Methods: To obtain local restaurant-related data, each of the 2,900 local US health departments were contacted and invited to complete a web-based survey. The 50-question survey instrument was designed to collect jurisdictional demographics, frequency of foodborne outbreaks, frequency of restaurant inspections and food handler training requirements for three consecutive years (2010, 2011 and 2012). Data collection began April 2013.
Results: The preliminary results of this analysis include data from the first 143 completed local health department surveys from 38 states (response rate = 4.9%). In 2012, local jurisdictions varied by number of registered restaurants (mean 946; range 6 to 24,875) and number of restaurant-related foodborne illness outbreaks (mean 1.0; range 0 to 22). The mean restaurant inspection ratio (restaurant inspections per year to registered restaurants) was 2.0 (range 0.7 to 5.0) and restaurant risk classification schemes were inconsistent. The mean restaurant to inspector ratio was 155 (range 12 to 546) and the restaurant inspection to inspector ratio was 291 (range 16 to 1012). One-quarter of local jurisdictions did not require any food handler training, while 17% required a certified food manager on the premises at all times and 29% required all food handlers to obtain a certification card.
Significance: These preliminary results demonstrate heterogeneity of restaurant inspection frequency and food handler training requirements throughout the United States, which may be important factors contributing to restaurant-related foodborne illness outbreaks. To our knowledge, these are the first national data examining an association between restaurant outbreaks and restaurant inspections. Additional data collection is ongoing.