Food terrorism: Perceptional gaps between importance and performance of preventive measures

This research paper investigated foodservice operators’ food terrorism risk perception and the perceptional gap between importance and performance of food terrorism preventive measures. Cluster analysis has performed using 35 gap scores. T-tests and chi-square tests were performed to compare clusters and address research questions. The largest discrepancy between importance and practice was found for practices related to communication. Smaller incongruities were found for practices related to chemical use and storage and food handling. The results also revealed that foodservice operators who had smaller perceptional gaps between importance and practice were not only more concerned about food bioterrorism and food biosecurity/defense but also performed preventive measures more frequently. This research concluded that enhancing awareness of food terrorism risks and focusing on the effectiveness of implementing preventive measures in food service operations can increase the level of preparedness against food bioterrorism.

Reference Information:

Yoon, E., & Shanklin, C.W. (2007). Food terrorism: Perceptional gaps between importance and performance of preventive measures. Journal of Foodservice Business Research, 10(4), 3-23.

This entry was posted on Monday, August 18th, 2008. It is filed under Hospitality Management and Dietetics and is tagged with cluster analysis, food biosecurity, food terrorism, foodservice.