Seminars

Jill McCluskey

Washington State University

Can Income Predict Food Safety Risk in Retail Food Environments?

Abstract In this study, we model the relationship between food safety and the average income in the surrounding community. Using data on the prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes collected from grocery store delis, we find that stores located in census tracts whose residents are in the lower quartiles of income have higher L. monocytogenes prevalence. The only other statistically significant sociodemographic variable is the category of "other races," which includes Asian, American Indian, and mixed-race residents.  We argue that a store's census-tract income is useful in predicting the prevalence of L. monocytogenes, and thus low-income status should be considered as a risk factor.

Jerry Skees

Global Parametrics

Amanda Countryman

Colorado State University

Nathan Hendricks

Kansas State University