Kitchen Hygiene in the Spotlight: How Cooking Shows Influence Viewers’ Hygiene Practices

Abstract

Poor hygiene when handling food is a major cause of foodborne illness. To investigate whether hygiene practices visible in television cooking shows influence viewers’ kitchen hygiene, a study on the adoption of demonstrated hygiene behavior was conducted under controlled, experimental conditions. In a study ostensibly on cooking by following recipes participants (n = 65) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions, in which they watched a cooking video that differed only with regard to the hygiene behavior of the chef. In condition 1, the chef engaged in poor hygiene practices while preparing the dish, in condition 2 the chef's hygiene behavior was exemplary and in condition 3, the chef's hygiene behavior was not visible (control condition). After watching the video, participants were instructed to cook the recipe individually in the fully equipped laboratory kitchen. Cooking sessions were videotaped and experimenters blind to condition coded hygiene lapses committed by participants. The level of kitchen hygiene displayed in the cooking video significantly affected hygiene practices of participants cooking the recipe. Participants who had watched the cooking video with correct hygiene practices committed significantly fewer hygiene lapses than those who had watched the video with poor hygiene practices. From a risk communication perspective, TV cooking shows are well placed to convey knowledge of essential hygiene practices during food preparation to a broad audience. To facilitate behavioral change toward safer food‐handling practices among viewers, visibly performing correct hygiene practices in cooking shows is a promising strategy.

Food safety in the aging population: Qualitative findings on what to communicate and how

“…Consequently, it may require additional steps to highlight the personal relevance of food safety communications, for instance by focusing on specific practices or situational contexts (Jackson & Meah, 2018). In addition, relevant information and safe food‐handling practices could be integrated into formats that convey knowledge in a more indirect way such as TV cooking shows (Koch et al., 2021). However, additional research is needed to confirm that indirect educational formats can help changing long‐established practices in older adults permanently.…”

Modernization of Control of Pathogenic Micro-Organisms in the Food-Chain Requires a Durable Role for Immunoaffinity-Based Detection Methodology—A Review

“…Sensible domestic hygiene principles seem partly lost. We learn about correct and incorrect hygiene in the kitchen effectively from watching cooking shows [44]. When asked, people generally are not aware to prepare their salad and vegetables before that of their meat, are not conscious of knife hygiene, hand washing, or refrigerator cleanliness (authors' outcomes of inquiries, unpublished).…”

TV cooking shows—Consumer entertainment or education?

“…Previous studies have examined the effects of television media and cooking shows on the consumers who watch them from various aspects (Koch et al, 2021; Maughan et al, 2017) and showed that consumers' food handling practices are significantly influenced by the behaviors shown on television cooking shows (Woods & Bruhn, 2016). Woods and Bruhn (2016) reported that about two‐thirds of study participants (self‐report) would mimic correct food safety, and about half would mimic poor hygiene practices demonstrated by a chef.…”