Food Service Safety Inspection and Risk Assessment

Restaurants, hot dog carts, snack bars, and any other business that serves food are subject to regular food safety inspections. Inspectors monitor the food service industry to reduce the health and safety risks to consumers and employees.

Consumer Risks

• Risks to consumer health include biological hazards like cross-contamination of food and food-processing and handling equipment, physical hazards like particles in food and chemical hazards like cleaning chemicals on utensils.

Employee Risks

• Risks to employee safety include physical hazards like meat slicers without safety guards, chemical hazards like using cleaning solvents without personal protective equipment and biological hazards like contracting contagious diseases from employees practicing poor hygiene.

Other Risks

• Risks to consumers include raw or undercooked meat or eggs, unrefrigerated dairy products, thawed and refrozen meats, food servers with unwashed hands and foreign objects in food or beverages. Risk assessment can reduce these hazards by enforcing proper food-handling practices.

Assessment

• Food service managers assess the risks to health and safety in their establishments, making sure that food safety procedures are in place. Managers are also responsible for holding regular training sessions and keeping records of violations and injuries.

Inspection

• The Health Department routinely inspects food service establishments to ensure the health and safety of customers. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspects the food service industry to oversee employee welfare.