One in six people (48M) in the US become sick from contaminated food each year. The reason it isn’t more than that, and that more people aren’t dying from food-borne illness like they did in centuries past, is that food production, transportation, and preparation is regulated and monitored according to guidelines that keep the public safe and producers and retail establishments in business.
There are food safety regulations in place that address all aspects of food handling, from “farm to table,” including pest prevention, preventing cross-contamination, hygiene/sanitation, safe storage and cooking temperatures, and proper waste disposal, overseen by multiple different agencies. The FDA publishes food safety guidelines in the form of the Food Code (FDA.GOV/FOOD) under the retail food protection program. States then choose to adopt all or part of those guidelines into their own regulations and assume responsibility for inspecting and enforcing them.
We talk about enforcement, but in the majority of day to day interactions, health department food inspectors are working in an educational capacity, with the goal of keeping the public safe and businesses successful. Rather than waiting for something to go wrong, the timing of routine inspections takes place depending on multiple variables, some of which are the amount of food served, amount of food made from raw products, and whether the establishment serves a high risk population, for example a pre-school or assisted living facility. Reinspection takes place as needed. A complaint-based inspection will be made if someone has submitted a signed complaint form to the health department.
Restaurants, fast food operations, cafeterias, grocery stores, and mobile units, commonly known as food trucks, are all examples of retail food establishments, as are catering operations, and school and health care kitchens. All retail food establishments are required to be licensed. Licensing ensures that all food safety guidelines are being followed, for instance, making sure that freezers and refrigerators are kept at the right temperature for storage; cross-contamination is not happening because food is being stored or handled improperly; there are enough of the right kind of handwashing stations – inadequate hygiene is one of commonest ways to spread illness – proper cooking temperatures are being met; and more! Plan reviews guide the licensing process; anyone interested in what that entails can visit the food establishment regulations page at NCHD.ORG and take a look at the plan review packets.
Part of the responsibility of a food inspector is to help retail food establishments continue to maintain safe food standards even as there is employee turnover. NCHD coordinates with CSU Extension to present food safety trainings for food handlers and managers several times a year, in English and Spanish. In between those scheduled trainings, health inspectors are able to provide information about food hazards, personal hygiene, cleaning and sanitation, and time and temperature controls so that all members of staff are using safe practices at all times. There are also online programs that provide food protection manager training in other languages.
Why does food safety require regulation and oversight?
The first food safety regulations were written in response to the public becoming aware of some really horrible practices taking place in food manufacturing and handling during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Lack of legal oversight allowed bad actors to get away with using harmful ingredients and dangerous manufacturing practices in the food industry. The first laws that addressed food safety were the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Federal Meat Inspection Act, passed in 1906.
Journalists in large cities like New York and Chicago had been writing newspaper articles exposing conditions in milk production and meat packing that prompted President Theodore Roosevelt to commission a study of the meat packing industry. With those findings, he put pressure on Congress to pass those first laws to set sanitation standards, prohibit the sale of adulterated or misbranded products, and mandate regular inspections. Adulterated refers to ingredients and preservatives that were added to products to make them seem fresh and wholesome, and misbranding refers to truth in labeling, many times because additives were being used that are not safe – or even food. Some of the examples of the ways food was adulterated were putting brick dust in cinnamon, ground bones in coffee, plaster in milk to make it thicker and whiter, coloring candy with lead, and preserving meat with borax.
Since those first food safety laws in 1906, additional acts have been passed to keep the food and drug supply safe and protect the public. The CDC began keeping records of foodborne illness related deaths and tracking outbreaks in 1970, and in 1996 CDC established a national laboratory network to be able to identify outbreaks more quickly.
What should I do if I think I have gotten food poisoning?
Symptoms of food-borne illness, aka food poisoning, can occur within a few hours or take several days or even weeks to develop. Common symptoms include diarrhea, stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, and fever. If symptoms are severe or last more than a few days, it is important to seek healthcare, especially if you have elevated risk factors such as being pregnant, over 65, or immune-compromised. Some infections spread by food can be life-threatening, with more rare symptoms (see CDC Food Poisoning Symptoms). When you see your healthcare provider or go to the emergency department, they will likely want to test your stool and blood so they can determine the germ that caused the illness. They may also ask you about what you have eaten, not just your most recent meal, but for the previous week or more. Some test results may be reported to the CDC and prompt further investigation to determine if there is an outbreak. Even if you do not seek medical attention, you should report your illness to the health department.
Even a mild case of food poisoning isn’t something you want to experience, and you certainly don’t want to endanger people in your home who may be at higher risk for dangerous complications. You can reduce that risk by following safe food handling practices while shopping and at home, most basic of which is proper and frequent handwashing, watching for recalls, and making sure that you purchase from licensed retail establishments.
