One of the main ways to make sure that cooked food is safe is by making sure that it is at the correct temperature. Either during cooking or while the food is being held for serving. The reason that taking temperature is so important is because at certain temperatures the harmful bacteria (or other pathogens) in foods are killed. This in turn reduces the risk of food poisoning.
In real life though, when the pace in the kitchen is frantic and the restaurant is potentially understaffed, compliance with this food safety regulation can be quite low. The reason for this is that there are several barriers that prevent food workers from adequately using food thermometers or from using food thermometers correctly.
In a 2019 Fehn and Bruhn did a study looking into motivators and barriers to using a food thermometer by food workers. There seem to be two main reasons that compliance with food thermometer use is less than ideal. The first is that workers feel that it is not necessary to use a thermometer. The second being that thermometers are difficult to select and use.
These two factors were further analysed and it was found that this reluctance to use thermometers arises from several factors such as: the preference for alternative techniques, poor training, poor mentorship and role model behaviour and limited awareness of the potential health implications.
The researchers of the same study also found that there were thermometer specific barriers that prevent people from properly using them. These barriers range from: difficulty in selecting thermometers, lack ok skills and knowledge, poor availably and lack of training.
All of these factors are all very important to consider when building new thermometers and new technology for the food industry. Potential barriers should be considered and factored into the design of thermometers and other safety protocols to mitigate these barriers and increase compliance.
With this in mind we are developing one such solution. A food thermometer that will make some of these issues obsolete and will ensure excellent compliance.
We are now moving into the next phase where we will take all that we have learned (and will continue to learn) and factor that into the technology that we are building. Watch this space. It’s going to revolutionise the food industry.
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