The Jefferson County Health Department plans to use a U.S. Food and Drug Administration grant to launch a retail food-grading system by the beginning of 2023.
The Health Department received $159,130 in grant funds to be used by Dec. 31, 2024, for the development and implementation of a retail food-grading system that would rank the cleanliness and safety of restaurants and other places that serve food, like giving it an A or B, Health Department environmental supervisor Nicole Thornton said.
“The ABC system is pretty recognizable, especially since the local counties such as St. Louis, participate in that already,” she said. “A lot of organizations and agencies throughout the U.S. already utilize these grading systems, and they’ve seen success with the compliance of their facilities.”
Thornton said there are many different systems, though. In addition to using letter grades, some use colors or emojis.
She said the Health Department plans to begin using the food-grading system in January 2023 and have it implemented at all food facilities by the end of that year.
Then, the agency will use 2024 to gather data and make sure the new system is working correctly.
She said the county has about 1,000 food facilities that the Health Department inspects once or more a year.
Thornton said places like convenience stores are inspected once a year, and restaurants are inspected at least three times a year.
Public information officer Brianne Zwiener said the Health Department also follows up on complaints it receives, but the actions taken in response to those complaints vary depending on the severity.
She said a Health Department employee could call the establishment, stop by for a quick check or complete a full inspection.
Thornton said right now the Health Department issues violations for things like pests; improper storage or refrigeration; and unsanitary conditions.
“There’s a priority violation, a core violation and a priority foundation violation,” she said. “Your priority (violations) are obviously more of your concerning ones. Those are the ones that typically can lead to any type of foodborne illness.”
Thornton said a core violation could be a back door not shutting all the way or a hole in a wall. A priority violation could be a pest infestation.
She said right now there is no easy, quick way for the public to know about violations at restaurants or other facilities other than asking the Health Department for a copy of the inspection reports.
Zwiener said anyone may request an establishment’s inspection reports by calling the Health Department at 636-797-3737.
She said the Health Department hopes to make those reports available online by the end of this summer.
Thornton said the Health Department already has begun working on a grading system but has not yet decided on the type of system it will use.
Thornton said once the agency has a draft of the food-grading system, the Health Department plans to survey the public about what they think of the entire system and specific parts of it.
“We don’t want this to be just a Health Department decision,” she said. “We want to take in the consideration of our business owners, restaurants, managers and the consumers.”
Zwiener said there is no current timeline for when the survey will be released.
Thornton said the USDA grant funds will cover the cost to update software, print materials about the new system and pay a part-time employee.
She said the Health Department currently is interviewing candidates for that position, which will probably pay about $19 an hour.
Thornton said the main reason for adopting a grading system is to protect the public from foodborne illnesses, like norovirus, salmonella, clostridium perfringens, campylobacter and staphylococcus aureus (staph).
“I think we will also be able to hold facilities a little more accountable for their compliances, but then also reward those who are consistently in compliance with the food code,” she said.
Thornton said a grading system also adds a level of transparency.
“It’s going to give (customers) a little idea, a little snapshot of what that kitchen is going to look like whenever we’re in there inspecting,” she said.