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Purpose@#This study examined the meal-kit consumption practices of adults in their 20s and 30s and analyzed the properties that should be given priority for improvement among the selection attributes to improve the quality of meal-kits. @*Methods@#Statistical analyses were conducted using the SPSS program (ver. 28.0) for χ2-test, t-test, one-way analysis of variance, Duncan’s multiple range test, factor analysis, and Importance-Satisfaction Analysis (ISA). @*Results@#Of the 249 subjects surveyed, 85.5% had some experience of purchasing meal-kits, with significantly more females than males (p < 0.01), significantly more married people than single people (p < 0.05), significantly more employed people than unemployed people (p < 0.05). Meal-kits were purchased most frequently for meals (60.6%), from discount stores or supermarkets (44.6%), and priced between 10,000 won and 20,000 won per person (46.9%). The overall satisfaction with meal-kits was 4.1 out of 5.0 points. The frequency of purchases was Korean soup dishes (69.5%), Korean main dishes (47.4%), and Korean street snacks (46.9%). Factor analysis of the meal-kit selection attributes revealed, 4 factors: ‘quality of food,’ ‘packaging and diversity,’ ‘quality of meal-kit,’ and ‘convenience and price.’ Compared to single-person households, multi-person households placed significantly higher importance on the ‘quality of food,’ ‘packaging and diversity,’ and ‘quality of meal-kit.’ The factor, ‘packaging and diversity’ were significantly higher in the importance evaluation scores for females (p < 0.01), married people (p < 0.05), and people in their 30s (p < 0.05) among meal-kit consumers. According to the ISA results, a critical aspect that meal-kit manufacturers or sellers should strengthen is ‘price.’ @*Conclusion@#Meal-kit products will need to be developed for various purposes that offer high value for money that can satisfy the consumers’ needs to improve the satisfaction of meal-kit consumers.
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Purpose@#The objective of this study was to investigate food and nutrition information utilization practices of adults aged between 20 and 30 years to provide the basic data for developing customized content. @*Methods@#Statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS program (ver. 24.0) for the χ 2 -test, t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and Duncan's multiple range test. @*Results@#Of the 570 subjects surveyed, 45.4% were men, 54.6% were women, 66.3% were in their 20s, 33.7% were in their 30s, 41.4% were single-person households, and 58.6% lived with their families. On average, 14.2% of televisions (TVs), 26.0% of personal computers (PCs), and 63.7% of smartphones were used for more than three hours per day. 30.9% of respondents searched for food and nutrition information more than once a week. 70.0% of the respondents had then applied the information in real life and 54.7% of the respondents said they would share information with others. Information retrieval rate was in the order of ‘restaurant (64.8%)’, ‘diet (57.5%)’, and ‘food recipes (55.7%)’. Overall satisfaction with food and nutrition information averaged 3.33 on a five-point scale. Satisfaction score was in the order of ‘enough description and easy to understand (3.43)’, ‘matching title and content (3.35)’, and ‘providing new and novel information (3.22)’. Satisfaction scores were significantly higher in the group that searched for information (p < 0.001), the group that used the retrieved information in real life (p < 0.001), and the group that conveyed this information to others (p < 0.001). @*Conclusion@#To improve information user satisfaction, it is necessary to provide customized information that fits the characteristics of information users. For this purpose, it is necessary to continuously conduct surveys and satisfaction evaluations for each target group.
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Purpose@#The objective of this study was to investigate food and nutrition information utilization practices of adults aged between 20 and 30 years to provide the basic data for developing customized content. @*Methods@#Statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS program (ver. 24.0) for the χ 2 -test, t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and Duncan's multiple range test. @*Results@#Of the 570 subjects surveyed, 45.4% were men, 54.6% were women, 66.3% were in their 20s, 33.7% were in their 30s, 41.4% were single-person households, and 58.6% lived with their families. On average, 14.2% of televisions (TVs), 26.0% of personal computers (PCs), and 63.7% of smartphones were used for more than three hours per day. 30.9% of respondents searched for food and nutrition information more than once a week. 70.0% of the respondents had then applied the information in real life and 54.7% of the respondents said they would share information with others. Information retrieval rate was in the order of ‘restaurant (64.8%)’, ‘diet (57.5%)’, and ‘food recipes (55.7%)’. Overall satisfaction with food and nutrition information averaged 3.33 on a five-point scale. Satisfaction score was in the order of ‘enough description and easy to understand (3.43)’, ‘matching title and content (3.35)’, and ‘providing new and novel information (3.22)’. Satisfaction scores were significantly higher in the group that searched for information (p < 0.001), the group that used the retrieved information in real life (p < 0.001), and the group that conveyed this information to others (p < 0.001). @*Conclusion@#To improve information user satisfaction, it is necessary to provide customized information that fits the characteristics of information users. For this purpose, it is necessary to continuously conduct surveys and satisfaction evaluations for each target group.
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Purpose@#This study was conducted to segment the delivery food market and to develop customized products and services. @*Methods@#This study analyzed 636 responses collected from customers who ordered delivery food. Statistical analyses were conducted using the SPSS program (ver. 25.0) for frequency analysis, χ2-test, one-way analysis of variance, factor analysis, and cluster analysis. @*Results@#Four factors were extracted by exploratory factor analysis (safety-orientation, convenience-orientation, taste-orientation, and economy-orientation) to explain the consumers’ food-related lifestyles. The results of cluster analysis indicated that the ‘low-interest group’, ‘convenience and economy-oriented group’, and ‘gourmet and economy-oriented group’ should be regarded as the target segments. Characteristic analysis of each cluster showed that low-interest group had higher rates of married (67.1%) and living with family (85.4%) than other clusters. The convenience and the economy-oriented group had higher rates of living alone (28.9%) than others. The gourmet and the economy-oriented group had a higher percentage of unmarried (62.0%) than the others. In addition, the average age of convenience and economy-oriented group (32.3 years) and gourmet and economy-oriented group (32.5 years) were significantly lower than the safety seeker (40.0 years) (p < 0.001). Difference analysis of the consumption practice according to the cluster, revealed significant differences in the order frequency (p < 0.001), main day to order (p < 0.05), source of information about delivery food (p < 0.001), order method (p < 0.001), and co-consumer (p < 0.01). In addition, the convenience and the economy-oriented group had significantly higher overall satisfaction than the others (p < 0.001). @*Conclusion@#These findings suggest that customer segmentation based on a food-related lifestyle can be used to build a successful marketing strategy. Therefore, restaurant managers and delivery platform operators should consider developing products and services according to the segmentation to maximize customer satisfaction.
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Purpose@#This study investigated customers' perception of a hygiene grade certification system for restaurants and this study also determined way to promote the application of the hygiene grade certification. @*Methods@#A total of 315 customer responses were used for the data analysis. Statistical analyses were conducted using the SPSS program (ver. 23.0) for frequency analysis, χ2-tests, t-tests, analysis of variance, and Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA). @*Results@#The composition of the respondents was 43.8% males and 56.2% females. The 73.3% lived with their families while 26.7% lived alone. Among those surveyed, 84.5% dine out at least once a week and 66.8% dine out during weekends evening. In addition, the most preferred types of restaurants were Korean restaurants (37.5%), delivery restaurants (14.6%), and Western restaurants (8.9%). Information about restaurant was most frequently obtained through Internet searches (54.0%). The average expenditure of eating-out per person was 15,483 Korean won, and the overall satisfaction averaged 3.58 out of 5 points. According to the results of IPA, the restaurant selection attributes that were priorities for improvement were the foods' taste and restroom cleanliness. In addition, 30.5% of respondents recognized the hygiene grade certification system for restaurants. The intention of dining at restaurants with a hygiene grade certification in the future was on average 4.02 out of 5 points. A total of 56.8% of respondents were willing to pay more for a restaurant with a hygiene grade certification. The average percentage of additional price was 6.02%. @*Conclusion@#In order to apply and quickly disseminate the hygiene grade certification system all over the Korea, the study results suggest that relevant policy should be provided by the Korean government for certified restaurants along with the relevant education and promotion of the system to customers.
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Purpose@#This study was performed to evaluate the importance and satisfaction of the selective attributes of delivery food and to analyze the factors affecting customer satisfaction. @*Methods@#A total of 574 responses were collected from customers who had ordered delivery food for data analysis. Statistical analyses were conducted using the SPSS program (ver. 25.0) for frequency analysis, χ 2 tests, t-test, factor analysis, Pearson correlation, multiple regression analysis, and Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA). @*Results@#The importance of delivery food selection attributes was higher in the order of ‘hygiene control level (4.72)’, ‘taste of food (4.64)’, and ‘delivery accuracy (4.40)’. Satisfaction assessment was higher in the order of ‘taste of food (4.32)’, ‘delivery accuracy (4.26)’, and ‘convenience of using the delivery app (4.21)’. According to the results of IPA, items that were priorities for improvement were charges for delivery, discount offers, sufficient description of the menu, and rapid handling of customer complaints. On an average, overall customer satisfaction score of delivery food was 4.01 out of 5 points. Additionally, five satisfaction factors were extracted by exploratory factor analysis. According to the results of multiple regression analysis, quality of delivery platform (p < 0.001), quality of delivery service (p < 0.001), convenience and diversity (p < 0.001), quality of delivery food (p < 0.001), and health and safety (p < 0.001) had significant positive effects on overall customer satisfaction. @*Conclusion@#To increase customer satisfaction among delivery food customers, restaurant or delivery platform managers should consistently improve not only the quality of the delivery platform but also the quality of the delivery food and service.
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BET inhibitor, as an epigenetic regulator inhibitor, reduces the expression of oncogenes such as Myc and Bcl-2, which affects cancer growth and development. However, it has modest activity because of the narrow therapeutic index. Therefore, combination therapy is necessary to increase the anti-tumor effect. Paclitaxel, an anti-mitotic inhibitor, is used as second-line therapy for gastric cancer (GC) as a monotherapy or combination. In this study, we performed RNA sequencing of GC cells treated with iBET-151 and/or paclitaxel to identify the differentially expressed genes associated with possible mechanisms of synergistic effect. We also performed Gene Ontology enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analyses to determine the most enriched terms and pathways of upregulated and downregulated genes. We found 460 genes in which iBET-151 and paclitaxel combination treatment changed more than single-treatment or no-treatment. Thus, additional functional studies are needed, but our results provide the first evidence of the synergistic effect between iBET-151 and paclitaxel in regulating the transcriptome of GC cells.
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Purpose@#This study was performed to evaluate the importance and satisfaction of the selective attributes of delivery food and to analyze the factors affecting customer satisfaction. @*Methods@#A total of 574 responses were collected from customers who had ordered delivery food for data analysis. Statistical analyses were conducted using the SPSS program (ver. 25.0) for frequency analysis, χ 2 tests, t-test, factor analysis, Pearson correlation, multiple regression analysis, and Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA). @*Results@#The importance of delivery food selection attributes was higher in the order of ‘hygiene control level (4.72)’, ‘taste of food (4.64)’, and ‘delivery accuracy (4.40)’. Satisfaction assessment was higher in the order of ‘taste of food (4.32)’, ‘delivery accuracy (4.26)’, and ‘convenience of using the delivery app (4.21)’. According to the results of IPA, items that were priorities for improvement were charges for delivery, discount offers, sufficient description of the menu, and rapid handling of customer complaints. On an average, overall customer satisfaction score of delivery food was 4.01 out of 5 points. Additionally, five satisfaction factors were extracted by exploratory factor analysis. According to the results of multiple regression analysis, quality of delivery platform (p < 0.001), quality of delivery service (p < 0.001), convenience and diversity (p < 0.001), quality of delivery food (p < 0.001), and health and safety (p < 0.001) had significant positive effects on overall customer satisfaction. @*Conclusion@#To increase customer satisfaction among delivery food customers, restaurant or delivery platform managers should consistently improve not only the quality of the delivery platform but also the quality of the delivery food and service.
ABSTRACT
BET inhibitor, as an epigenetic regulator inhibitor, reduces the expression of oncogenes such as Myc and Bcl-2, which affects cancer growth and development. However, it has modest activity because of the narrow therapeutic index. Therefore, combination therapy is necessary to increase the anti-tumor effect. Paclitaxel, an anti-mitotic inhibitor, is used as second-line therapy for gastric cancer (GC) as a monotherapy or combination. In this study, we performed RNA sequencing of GC cells treated with iBET-151 and/or paclitaxel to identify the differentially expressed genes associated with possible mechanisms of synergistic effect. We also performed Gene Ontology enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analyses to determine the most enriched terms and pathways of upregulated and downregulated genes. We found 460 genes in which iBET-151 and paclitaxel combination treatment changed more than single-treatment or no-treatment. Thus, additional functional studies are needed, but our results provide the first evidence of the synergistic effect between iBET-151 and paclitaxel in regulating the transcriptome of GC cells.
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BACKGROUND: We aimed to evaluate the spatial and temporal trends of the health burden attributable to particulate matter less than 2.5 µm in diameter (PM2.5) in the metropolitan cities and provinces of the Korea. METHODS: We used modeled PM2.5 concentration data for the basic administrative levels, comprising the cities and the provinces of Korea, the corresponding annual population census data for each level, and the age and cause specific mortality data. We applied cause-specific integrated exposure-response functions to calculate the premature mortality attributable to ambient PM2.5 for four disease end points (ischemic heart disease [IHD], chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [COPD], lung cancer [LC], and cerebrovascular disease [stroke]) for the year 2015. Moreover, the temporal trends of the health burden from 2006 to 2015 were assessed. RESULTS: The annual average PM2.5 concentration for Korea was 24.4 μg/m3, and 11,924 premature deaths were attributable to PM2.5 exposure in 2015. By simulating the reduction in the annual mean values of PM2.5 to 10 µg/m3, about 8,539 premature deaths were preventable. There was spatial variation in mortality burden attributable to PM2.5 across the sub-national regions of Korea. In particular, the high burden was concentrated at Seoul and Gyeonggi province due to the high population density. However, decreasing trends were noted for most of the metropolitan cities and provinces of Korea since 2006. CONCLUSION: Our findings show that further actions to improve air quality in Korea would substantially improve the health burden due to particulate matter.
Subject(s)
Censuses , Cerebrovascular Disorders , Heart Diseases , Korea , Lung Neoplasms , Mortality , Mortality, Premature , Particulate Matter , Population Density , Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive , SeoulABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The purposes of this study were to investigate food consumption practices and analyze factors that influence customer satisfaction of an HACCP applied restaurant in a highway service area. METHODS: A total of 207 customer responses were used for data analysis. Statistical analyses were conducted using the SPSS program (ver. 22.0) for χ²-test, Pearson correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis. RESULTS: Reasons for visiting the highway area were using the restroom (86.0%), purchasing of meals or snacks (70.1%), taking a rest (58.5%), and shopping (3.4%) and selection attributes of food sold in the highway service area were food taste (48.8%), food safety (33.3%), and waiting time for meal (10.7%). According to the results of the survey, udon (66.2%) was the most preferred meal, followed by instant noodles (56.0%), kimbap (50.7%), pork cutlet (38.2%), and bibimbap (29.0%). In addition, coffee (73.4%) was the most preferred among snacks and beverages, followed by beverages (58.9%), walnut cake (53.1%), mineral water (52.2%), and hotbar (52.2%). Satisfaction evaluation scores of foods sold in the highway service area were highest for appropriate portion size, followed by food safety, menu variety, food taste, and reasonable price. Overall customer satisfaction scores regarding the restaurant in the highway service area was 3.24 out of 5 points on average. According to the results of the multiple regressing analysis, food taste (p < 0.001) and reasonable price (p < 0.01) had significant positive effects on overall customer satisfaction. CONCLUSION: To enhance customer satisfaction, restaurant managers in the highway service area should implement HACCP, improve food taste, and set up a proper price for food sold at the restaurant in the highway service area.
Subject(s)
Beverages , Coffee , Food Analysis , Food Safety , Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points , Juglans , Meals , Mineral Waters , Portion Size , Red Meat , Restaurants , Snacks , Statistics as TopicABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: This study was performed to develop a food safety education program for school foodservice employees and evaluate its effectiveness. METHODS: Food safety education programs were made into two levels; one for new employees in school foodservice and another for employees in charge of Critical Control Point (CCP) monitoring. The programs were for 40-minute-long lecture using PowerPoint. The effectiveness of these programs were assessed based on eleven evaluation items by school foodservice dieticians (n=30) and the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) specialist (n=13). All statistical analyses are conducted by SPSS package program (ver 20.0). RESULTS: According to the results of evaluating the food safety education program by dietitian and HACCP specialist, the overall satisfaction score was 4.14, evaluated by 5 point scale. There were no significant difference in results of evaluation between dieticians and HACCP specialists. The score of 'it is helpful to work' and 'pictures, images and charts are pertinent to study' were higher than others while the score of 'education contents is pleasant and interesting' and 'screen is pleasant and interesting' were the lowest among all evaluation items. CONCLUSIONS: To increase the school foodservice quality, employees should be offered regular food safety education and training through effective education media including prerequisite program and HACCP manual for school foodservice.
Subject(s)
Humans , Education , Food Safety , Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points , Nutritionists , SpecializationABSTRACT
PURPOSE: This study was conducted to examine prerequisite-program performance of the hospital foodservice operation and develop measures for improvement of prerequisite-program performance. METHODS: Data were collected through surveys administered to 168 hospital dieticians in the Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi-do, Daegu, and North Gyeongsang areas. Out of total questionnaires, 65 questionnaires were usable and the response rate was 38.7%. Statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS program (ver 20.0) for chi2-test and one-way ANOVA. RESULTS: According to the result of the prerequisite-program evaluation, the percentage of 'appropriate', 'needs to be improved', and 'inappropriate' was 44.6%, 47.7%, and 7.7%, respectively. The score for the 'inappropriate' group was significantly lower than that of the 'appropriate' group or 'needs to be improved' group on the food safety management (p < 0.001), preparation facility management (p < 0.001), water management (p < 0.001), and storage.transportation management (p < 0.05) parts. Holding rate of foodservice facility and equipments in the 'appropriate' group were significantly higher than in the others on convection oven (p < 0.01), air conditioner (p < 0.01), three-compartment sink (p < 0.01), hot-holding equipment (p < 0.01), cold-holding equipment (p < 0.05), exclusive thawing refrigerator (p < 0.05), and sterilizer for sanitary shoes (p < 0.05) items. CONCLUSION: To improve the quality of hospital foodservice, foodservice managers and HACCP specialists should develop and implement a prerequisite-program and a HACCP plan considering the characteristics of the hospital foodservice operation.
Subject(s)
Convection , Food Safety , Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points , Hospitals, General , Nutritionists , Seoul , Shoes , Specialization , WaterABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: Numerous studies have revealed the adverse health effects of acute and chronic exposure to particulate matter less than 10 mum in aerodynamic diameter (PM10). The aim of the present study was to examine the spatial distribution of PM10 concentrations and cardiovascular mortality and to investigate the spatial correlation between PM10 and cardiovascular mortality using spatial scan statistic (SaTScan) and a regression model. METHODS: From 2008 to 2010, the spatial distribution of PM10 in the Seoul metropolitan area was examined via kriging. In addition, a group of cardiovascular mortality cases was analyzed using SaTScan-based cluster exploration. Geographically weighted regression (GWR) was applied to investigate the correlation between PM10 concentrations and cardiovascular mortality. RESULTS: An examination of the regional distribution of the cardiovascular mortality was higher in provincial districts (gu) belonging to Incheon and the northern part of Gyeonggido than in other regions. In a comparison of PM10 concentrations and mortality cluster (MC) regions, all those belonging to MC 1 and MC 2 were found to belong to particulate matter (PM) 1 and PM 2 with high concentrations of air pollutants. In addition, the GWR showed that PM10 has a statistically significant relation to cardiovascular mortality. CONCLUSIONS: To investigate the relation between air pollution and health impact, spatial analyses can be utilized based on kriging, cluster exploration, and GWR for a more systematic and quantitative analysis. It has been proven that cardiovascular mortality is spatially related to the concentration of PM10.
Subject(s)
Air Pollutants , Air Pollution , Mortality , Particulate Matter , Seoul , Spatial AnalysisABSTRACT
The purposes of this study were to evaluate on the importance about the possible remedies for improvement of sanitation management by foodservice manager and to compare dietitians' opinion and that of administrators about theirs. A questionnaire survey was performed by 282 dietitians and 56 administrators, who were involved at foodservice facilities in Daegu and Gyeongbuk from March 7 to March 9 in 2007. According to the results of the importance evaluation analysis about the remedies for improvement of sanitation management, there were significant differences between dietitians and administrators in the means of 6 items such as "remodeling of hygiene equipment and facilities", "improvement of dietitians' food safety knowledge", "self-operated management of foodservice operation", "enforcement of cooperation between the CEO or administrators and dietitians", "development of food safety education program for foodservice workers", "increasing of foodservice operating budget". In all of them, the dietitians' evaluation scores were significantly higher than that of administrators. In addition, four factors were extracted by exploratory factor analysis. According to the results of one-way ANOVA, operating, education, and policy.support sector showed that significant differences across type of foodservice, frequency of meals served, number of meals served per day, dietitians' education level and career. On the other hand, supervision sector showed that significant differences across number of meals served per day and dietitians' employment type. In conclusion, in order to increase the quality of sanitation in the foodservice operation, we should increase sanitation performance and enforce the food-safety education for foodservice workers. In addition, government should increase the policy support.
Subject(s)
Humans , Administrative Personnel , Employment , Food Safety , Hand , Hygiene , Meals , Organization and Administration , Surveys and Questionnaires , SanitationABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to examine consumers' behaviors toward ready-to-eat foods and to develop ready-to-eat food market segmentation in Korea. The food-related lifestyle and purchase behaviors of ready-to-eat foods were evaluated using 410 ready-to-eat food consumers in the Republic of Korea. Four factors were extracted by exploratory factor analysis (health-orientation, taste-orientation, convenience-orientation, and tradition-orientation) to explain the ready-to eat food consumers' food-related lifestyles. The results of cluster analysis indicated that "tradition seekers" and "convenience seekers" should be regarded as the target segments. Chi-square tests and t-tests of the subdivided groups showed there were significant differences across marital status, education level, family type, eating-out expenditure, place of purchase, and reason for purchase. In conclusion, the tradition seekers consumed more ready-to-eat foods from discount marts or specialty stores and ate them between meals more often than the convenience seekers. In contrast, the convenience seekers purchased more ready-to-eat foods at convenience stores and ate them as meals more often than the tradition seekers. These findings suggest that ready-to-eat food market segmentation based on food-related lifestyles can be applied to develop proper marketing strategies.
Subject(s)
Humans , Health Expenditures , Hypogonadism , Korea , Life Style , Marital Status , Marketing , Meals , Mitochondrial Diseases , Ophthalmoplegia , Republic of KoreaABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to compare the status of sanitation education and sanitation knowledge in school foodservice with commercial foodservice. The survey sample was institutional foodservice directors (n = 88) in A office of education and commercial foodservice directors (n = 81) in B foodservice industry. The questionnaire requested information about demographic information, situation of sanitation education, contents of sanitation education practice, importance of sanitation education, and sanitation knowledge. Data were analyzed using frequencies, means, chi-square test, and t-test. Over half (52.1%) of the respondents were institutional foodservice directors, 47.9% of the respondents were commercial foodservice directors. The majority of institutional foodservice directors were 25-29 years of age (38.6%), over 10 years of working experience (63.6%) and commercial foodservice directors were 25-29 years of age (53.1%), 5-10 years of working experience (35.0%). 66.3% of the respondents were educated food safety once a month, but 8.6% of commercial foodservices were never educated. The majority of the respondents used printing materials (73.3%) or lecture (74.8%). The importance level of institutional foodservice directors about sanitation education was significantly higher than commercial foodservice directors. The average score of institutional foodservice directors'sanitation knowledge was 87.05/100.00. The commercial foodservice directors'sanitation knowledge 67.74 was significantly lower than institutional foodservice directors (p< 0.05). Therefore, there should be a systematic education program designed for commercial foodservice directors.
Subject(s)
Humans , Surveys and Questionnaires , Food Safety , SanitationABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to investigate utilization and storage management practice of the frozen and refrigerated foods in school foodservice. 222 dietitians employed in school foodservice were surveyed. In school foodservice, the refrigerated stock farm products and seafoods (78.3%) were more used rather than frozen products (47.5%). According to school foodservice characteristics, the refrigerated meats including dairy products were more frequently used in elementary and middle schools than high school foodservice. On the other hand, the foodservice in high school used more frozen seafoods and processed foods than elementary school did. The data also showed a tendency for the contracted foodservice using more frozen meats and seafoods rather than refrigerated products when comparing with the self-operated foodservice. In terms of receiving conditions, storage methods and storage time, the result indicated that frozen or refrigerated products were often delivered at inappropriate temperature. Especially some products which were needed to be shipped and stored at refrigerated temperature such as mollusks, were delivered and kept at room temperature. The most frequently used thawing method were running water (56.9%), however, the frozen products were often sitted at room temperature for the purpose of thawing. According to the results, several inappropriate handling processes for frozen and refrigerated products were found in school foodservice. In order to improve handling process for frozen and refrigerated products, recognition of food handlers' weakness about storage and distribution, development of radical standards for receiving conditions, storage and thawing methods should be debated.
Subject(s)
Humans , Dairy Products , Hand , Meat , Mollusca , Nutritionists , Running , Seafood , Ships , WaterABSTRACT
This study was to examine the needs among elementary school dietitians (n = 115) for developing a nutrition information internet site for children. A survey questionnaire included general characteristics, internet use regarding health and nutrition information, and needs for developing a nutrition information site. The mean age of the subjects was 36.2 years. The higher working experience group (> 10 years of working as dieticians) had higher mean age (p < 0.001), had a larger number of enrolled students at school (p < 0.01) and the number of those receiving school lunch (p < 0.01) than the counterparts (< or = 10 years group). Sources of health and nutrition information were mainly PC/internet (60.4%) and seminar (14.4%). About 95% used health or nutrition information using the internet, however, the majority of users (71.6%) used internet information only when they needed it. Major reasons for using internet information was 'to get nutrition education materials' (63.8%) and 'to obtain general nutrition information' (21%). One third of the subjects were satisfied with nutrition information internet sites; major problems with internet sites were 'lack of content' (38.9%) and 'lack of practical information' (33%). These characteristics regarding internet use were not different between work experience groups. Major problems with nutrition education were 'lack of nutrition educational materials' (41.1%) and 'lack of nutrition education skills' (32.1%). These were significantly different between the work experience groups (p < 0.01). Subjects preferred CD/ internet to leaflet/booklet as nutrition educational materials. In developing nutrition sites for children, subjects wanted topics such as obesity assessment, dietary assessment, and obesity. Subjects responded that contents of nutrition information should be 'suitable to the children's knowledge levels' (31.1%), 'interesting enough by including quizzes, games and songs' (27.8%), 'inserting many illustrations/icons' (16.3%). In terms of designing internet sites for children, they wanted that internet sites should 'be easy enough to find the sites' (29.2%), 'use illustrations and characters' (24.8%), 'use communication channels such as Q&A' (18.7%). Needs for developing internet sites for children were not different by the work experience group. This study suggests that web sites for children should be carefully developed considering the contents and design, have less information with more illustrations, designed to induce the interest of children, as well as including sections such as eating habit assessment and games.
Subject(s)
Child , Humans , Eating , Education , Internet , Lunch , Needs Assessment , Nutritionists , Obesity , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to evaluate the perception of importance about prerequisite program(PRP) of dietitians. A questionnaire was developed to achieve research objectives and sent to random samples of 450 dietitians by a mail from July to August in 2000 ; 242(54%) responses were analyzed. The respondents used three-point-scale to rate their perception of importance about PRP from 1-"will be necessary" to 3-"very important". All statistical analyses were conducted using SAS package(version 8.12) in order to have means, standard deviations, One-way analysis of variance, Duncan's multiple range test and t-test. The study results were summarized as follows. The rates of perception of importance about PRP were significantly different from 21 of the 37 contents among business and industry, health care and school foodservice and were significantly different from 16 of the 37 contents among direct and contract management(p<.05 or p<.01 or p<.001). Dietitians in business and industry had lowest perception of importance about PRP of other respondents. Generally, the item related to "employee hygiene practice" had the highest perception level score among PRP in foodservice facilities. Results indicate that there is a need for increased education of dietitians about PRP and appropriate practices.