Case Studies in Cultural Awareness in Food Safety

To organize, you need to document; there should be clearly written performance objectives for any job. “Those things become hyper important when you’re dealing with a different culture. If you don’t have job descriptions and you don’t have performance appraisals, you are opening yourself up for problems.”

On the flip side, the problematic behavior of an individual must be dealt with from the standpoint of respect for, and understanding of, a given culture, while at the same time not treating the person as a part of a group.

Consider the habit of gum chewing: “We find that some cultures chew gum while they work, and it’s hard to break that habit.” Yet, the problem must first be addressed globally—no gum chewing—then individually, should the behavior persist.

Understanding certain behaviors is also necessary. “In some cultures, women wear jewelry as a sign of social status,” explained Costa. While this is an obvious sanitation issue in food handling, the discussion must begin at the social level. “If you talk to

people and acknowledge their concerns, then explain to them what your concerns are, you’re on much better footing than just saying, ‘Look, no jewelry allowed.’”

Finally, cultural sensitivity must be encouraged among cultures. “With a multicultural workforce you will see cliques forming,” warned Costa, “and this can result in turf wars within a plant.”

The solution is to break down the cultural barriers. “When you recognize those types of things happening, one strategy is to bring them together into some kind of working group—a sanitation committee or HACCP group, for example.” Such a measure must be multidimensional, cutting across operational areas—maintenance, shipping, sanitation, and so on—for maximum inclusion. Giving diverse groups a common goal, with a globally understood and enforced set of behavioral standards, is the best way to ensure food safety and workplace harmony.

Neil Canavan is a science/medical writer based in Brooklyn, N.Y. Reach him at [email protected].