Consumers Don't Practice Food Safety

April 27, 2001

Nearly three-fourths of the U.S. population violates recommended food safety practices in their own kitchens, according to a study conducted in 2000 by Audits International. The most common mistake is a failure to wash hands before handling food. Other mistakes include improper food preparation techniques, cross contamination, improper cooling of leftovers and not cooking food to the proper temperature.

Auditors monitored meal preparation, meal presentation, leftover handling and clean-up in 115 households in 74 U.S. cities. Seventy-four percent of the households had at least one food safety mistake, according to the study. When compared to studies of restaurant food preparation practices, Americans are doing no better in their own kitchens to avoid common food safety hazards. The Food and Drug Administration provided data on restaurant performance.

The study also showed the causes of home meal preparation mistakes fell into three categories. Twenty percent of participants said they did not believe safe handling warnings; 40% said they did not know about the warnings; and another 40% said they were not thinking.

Audits International President Richard Daniels said a decline negative media coverage of foodborne illnesses may be linked to the decline in food safety practices in kitchens. Daniels said the extensive rate of improvement between the 1997 and 1999 studies could be linked to the public's "media-driven fears about hamburgers, eggs, chicken and even lettuce."

Audits International, which conducts food safety risk assessments, has done this study every two years since 1997.