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PurposeThe concept of food safety organizational culture, whilst largely ignored in the past, is attracting increasing interest. The purpose of this paper is to examine a possible framework for assessing a business's food safety culture.Design/methodology/approachThe literature on health and safety culture and organizational culture is examined and relevant components applicable to food safety are identified and discussed.FindingsA total of six possible groupings including: food safety management systems and style; food safety leadership; food safety communication; food safety commitment; food safety environment and risk perception were identified as “culture” factors that could contribute to food safety performance. These can form the basis for assessing food safety culture and how this may be done practically along with the creation of a positive food safety culture are discussed. Management is traditionally talked about in food safety but a distinction is drawn between this and food safety leadership.Originality/valueFor the first time a method for, and the potential benefits from, assessing food safety culture is presented and this will be of value to auditors, environmental health practitioners and industry. Utilizing the suggestions in the paper could help improve compliance with third‐party hygiene standards, and reduce the risk of food poisoning.

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PurposeOutbreaks of foodborne disease are often investigated to determine the causes although traditional approaches to identifying risk factors may not determine the real or underlying causes. The aim of this paper is to identify a food safety culture that can be used in addition to more traditional risk factors.Design/methodology/approachA parallel is drawn between the use of the term “emerging pathogen” and the emergence of food safety culture as a risk factor in food poisoning outbreaks. The evolution of the term starting with organizational culture is developed via the literature on health and safety culture. The concept of food safety culture and reservations over the use of the term are examined along with possible distinctions between food safety culture and climate.FindingsThe concept of food safety culture has direct parallels with “safety culture” and in the prevention of healthcare associated infections. The use of food safety culture is useful as part of outbreak investigation. It is likely that more than one food safety culture exists within large organizations or those with multiple sub units. A definition of food safety culture is proposed.Originality/valueIncreasing interest is being shown in the use of food safety culture to understand and, in turn prevent, food poisoning outbreaks and this is the first time a definition has been proposed. This paper will be of great interest to industry, academics and public health officials and can be used to answer questions on the topic, which are increasingly being asked by hygiene examining bodies.

Aims:  To investigate factors influencing the recovery of micro‐organisms from surfaces using traditional swabbing techniques. Methods and Results:  Stainless steel squares were inoculated with known levels (approx. 2·7 × 102–2·7 × 104) of either Escherichia coli or Staphylococcus aureus and sampled using different swab/solution combinations. Overlaying the coupons with agar allowed colonies remaining on the surface to be enumerated. Conventional cultivation was used to determine the ease with which the bacteria were released from the swabs and the viability of the organisms within the solutions over a 24‐h period. Minimal bacterial growth occurred when the samples were stored at 4°C. At room temperature, whilst the presence of nutrients significantly increased bacterial numbers over time, the addition of Tween 80 to nutrient depleted environments significantly reduced the viability of Staph. aureus. The percentage of bacteria released from directly inoculated swabs was significantly higher than that recovered from surface swabs, highlighting the importance of effectively removing bacterial contaminants from a surface. Increasing the level of mechanical energy generated during swabbing increased the number of bacteria removed from a wet surface. However, it is hypothesized that cellular damage, perhaps caused by the swabbing action itself, may have reduced recoverability from a dry surface. Nonetheless, an increased ability to effectively remove bacteria from a surface did not necessarily correlate with higher bacterial recovery, implying that an equally important factor in terms of swabbing efficiency is the ability of a swab to effectively release bacteria into a diluent. Conclusions:  Both swab and wetting solution can influence the number of bacteria recovered. Under the experimental conditions described here, the use of swabs coated with a brush‐textured nylon flock in combination with a non‐growth‐enhancing wetting solution appeared the best system to use when sampling a wet surface. However, this combination may not always be ideal and proper consideration must be given to how the sample is to be taken, transported and, if necessary, stored prior to analysis. Significance and Impact of the Study:  Careful selection of swabbing materials can increase the sensitivity of traditional microbiological analysis. However, any improvements made are likely to be insignificant in relation to the overall poor performance of the swabbing technique.

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