Assessing Food Safety Culture: A Comparative Study between Independent and Chain Mexican and Chinese Restaurants

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the food safety culture in independent and chain Mexican and Chinese restaurants based on food handlers’ demographics and operational characteristics. A self-administered questionnaire was designed to collect data on-site from a stratified random sample of 300 food handlers, with the goal of having 75 food handlers from each stratum of independent and chain Mexican and Chinese restaurants. A total of 106 restaurants agreed to participate. This included 31 independent Chinese restaurants, 28 independent Mexican restaurants, 16 chain Chinese restaurants, and 31 chain Mexican restaurants. Independent t-tests and a one-way analysis of variance were used to analyze the data. There were significant differences in food handlers’ perceptions of leadership and environmental support in Mexican versus Chinese restaurants. Significant differences were found between the food handlers who received food safety training and those who did not. The respondents’ perception of leadership was significantly different among restaurants with different types of service. Perception of commitment to food safety was significantly different among food handlers of different ethnicities. Restaurant operators are recommended to focus on leadership styles, enhanced food safety training, and a physical environment more supportive of a positive food safety culture.