Food Protection Trends - May/June 2020 - 162

food practices and policies. Campus dining managers could
utilize the results of the present study to improve their
employee food safety training programs or food safety
manuals, focusing particularly on the areas that had the most
non-critical violations. Campus dining employees should
be regularly trained on the importance of labeling all foods
being served, identifying and segregating foods, and keeping
foods safe and unadulterated; they should be provided with
manuals on how to clean facilities, as well as with enough
handwashing supplies and facilities.
Because of the differences among types of schools, managers
at school foodservice operations could use several different
strategies to reduce the number of both critical and non-critical
violations from the health inspections. Also, they could provide
effective training materials to their employees; this would
ultimately prevent foodborne illnesses in students, because
food safety training can improve food handling practices (8).
Green and Selman (10) found that food safety programs
need to address the full range of factors that impact food
preparation behaviors, including control of food temperature,
equipment usage, and employee hygiene practices. Other
researchers have also indicated that trainings on food safety
is needed to increase the motivation for food professionals to
implement preventive measures (34). Managers or supervisors
at school foodservice operations can create training handbooks
based on the results of this study. Restaurants at campus
dining services need to work on reducing violations related
to managing and controlling food temperatures, using
temperature measuring devices, protecting foods from crosscontamination, maintaining air conditioning system vents,
and keeping walls, ceilings, and light bulbs clean. Managers at
foodservice operations should obtain ServSafe certifications
in order to transfer food safety knowledge to their employees.
Thus, managers could take a more active role in ensuring
food safety by conducting a personal inspection to reinforce
their current food safety practices (34). A few other studies
also have shown that food safety certification can improve
restaurant inspection scores (2, 8). Significantly, special needs'
schools have an urgent need to train employees on hygiene
practices. Employees should always wear hair restraints, wash
their hands after each task, and eat, drink, and smoke tobacco
only in designated areas. Also, foodservice operations at special
needs' schools must focus on significantly reducing violations
regarding compliance and enforcement. It is essential that
they submit a HACCP plan as required by law (17). The
contents of HACCP include categorizations of the types of
potentially hazardous foods, standard operating procedures,
and designation of a person in charge. Moreover, it can be
suggested that high schools and juvenile schools should focus
on avoiding violations related to keeping walls and ceilings
clean and durable, preventing muddy conditions, protecting
the facility from dead or flying insects, and maintenance of
outdoor areas.

162

Food Protection Trends May/June

LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE STUDY
The current study has several limitations. First, it used health
inspection results from schools only in the state of Missouri,
so that the results not be generalized to all other types of
foodservice operations and all other parts of the U.S. Second,
the current study had difficulty accessing inspection reports
from many counties because of incomplete information
available to the public. Although some counties provide
complete health inspection results for every foodservice
facility, others do not reveal any information related to health
inspections. Last, because not all counties included past
health inspection results, the total number of critical and noncritical violations from some counties may not be available
for all six years covered by this study. A few counties publicly
released school health inspection reports for the entire six-year
period. To avoid those limitations, the current study could be
expanded by accessing inspection reports of other types of
foodservice operations in Missouri and using a greater number
of available inspection reports.
CONCLUSION
In the restaurant industry, inspections are important in
ensuring the safety of patrons. In this study, the patrons are
students, many of whom may be particularly vulnerable
to foodborne illnesses. Thus, it is important that all safety
regulations be complied with, to reduce the number of
both critical and non-critical violations noted during the
health inspections and improve the overall inspection
score. The results of this study contain the most up-to-date
inspection results for 28 counties in the state of Missouri
and identify specific inspection criteria that were most and
least frequently violated in school foodservice operations in
Missouri. We gathered the available health inspection results
from schools, coded critical and non-critical violations, and
used statistical analyses to identify areas that need more
attention from management. On the basis of the descriptive
statistics and one-way ANOVA results, we can suggest
improvements in specific areas of food safety practice, policy,
and overall facility maintenance. The findings emphasize
the need to increase food safety practices awareness among
school foodservice managers or supervisors. However, many
counties in Missouri do not make health inspection results
public. Schools should not take advantage of this fact, but
instead should strive to consistently provide foodservice in
accordance with the Missouri food code (19). The findings of
the present study can be used to identify food safety training
needs for school foodservice operations in Missouri.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This research did not receive any specific grant from
funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-forprofit sectors.

Food Protection Trends - May/June 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - May/June 2020