Results of routine inspections in restaurants and institutional catering establishments associated with foodborne outbreaks in Finland

Figures & data

Table 1. Place of exposure of foodborne outbreaks associated with restaurants and institutional catering in Finland in 2015–2018.

Place of exposure^a	Number of outbreaks
The registered place of exposure referred to an identified restaurant or institutional catering establishment that was under regular official control by the municipal food control authority.	118
The place of exposure was not a restaurant or institutional catering establishment (but for example a school or nursing home). Food vehicle originated from a restaurant or institutional catering establishment under regular official control by the municipal food control authority and utbreak investigation data suggested that the outbreak was associated with a restaurant or institutional catering establishment or some stage preceding it rather than to any factor after the food had left the restaurant or institutional catering establishment.	25
Total	143

^aRefers to the place where the food had been eaten.

Table 2. Number of outbreak and control establishments involved in analyses and ratio of outbreak establishments to control establishments according to type of establishment.

Type of establishment	Outbreak establishments^a		Control establishments^b	Ratio of all outbreak establishments^a to control establishments^b
	All	Outbreaks with strength of evidence from A to C^c
Restaurants^d	87	51	12 885	6.8/1 000
Institutional catering^e	34	23	15 787	2.2/1 000
Total	121	74	28 672	4.2/1 000

a Outbreak establishments with at least one routine inspection within 24 months before outbreak between May 2013-December 2018.

b Control establishments with at least one routine inspection between May 2013-December 2018.

c Outbreak establishments associated to outbreaks with strength of evidence registered as A, B or C.

d Does not include cafes, pubs or grill and fast food establishments.

e Includes central kitchens, industrial kitchens, kitchens that prepare precooked food products for service and catering.

Table 3. Causative agents in outbreaks associated with outbreak establishments^a.

Causative agent	Number of outbreaks
Unknown	61
Norovirus	38
Bacillus cereus	6
Campylobacter	4
Clostridium perfringens	4
Salmonella	3
Yersinia enterocolitica	2
Cryptosporidium	1
Listeria monocytogenes	1
Sodium nitrate	1
Total	121

a Outbreak establishments with at least one routine inspection within 24 months before outbreak between May 2013-December 2018.

Table 4. Grades of latest routine inspection before the outbreak in outbreak establishments associated with outbreaks with A, B or C as strength of evidence in Finland in 2015–2018, and one randomly selected routine inspection per each control establishment in institutional catering.

Oiva item^a	Number and grade (%) of outbreak establishments^b					Number and grade (%) of control establishments^c
	n	Excellent	Good	To be corrected	Poor	n	Excellent	Good	To be corrected	Poor	p^d
Own-check plan
Own-check plan and its controllability	16	93.8	6.3	0.0	0.0	10,949	93.2	5.1	1.7	0.0	0.68
Adequacy of the own-check plan	16	81.3	18.8	0.0	0.0	8886	85.4	14.1	0.6	0.0	0.53
Suitability, adequacy and maintenance of facilities and equipment
Suitability of facilities for use as food premises	17	88.2	11.8	0.0	0.0	11,315	90.9	7.6	1.5	0.0	0.52
Condition of premises	17	70.6	29.4	0.0	0.0	11,542	87.7	11.3	1.0	0.0	0.08
Working utensils, fixtures and equipment	16	75.0	25.0	0.0	0.0	11,456	91.5	7.7	0.8	0.0	0.05
Cleanliness of facilities, surfaces and equipment
General order and cleanliness of facilities	23	82.6	13.0	4.3	0.0	15,650	93.7	5.7	0.6	0.0	0.03
Cleanliness of working utensils and equipment	23	87.0	13.0	0.0	0.0	15,031	96.6	3.1	0.3	0.0	0.05
Cleanliness of the space for cleaning equipment and cleaning equipment	23	82.6	17.4	0.0	0.0	15,082	91.4	8.2	0.5	0.0	0.20
Vermin and other animals	6	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	5956	98.1	1.7	0.2	0.0	1.00
Waste management	8	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	7321	98.9	0.9	0.2	0.0	1.00
Actions and training of personnel
Hygiene of work practices used by personnel	21	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	13,921	98.2	1.6	0.2	0.0	1.00
Hand hygiene	21	95.2	4.8	0.0	0.0	15,308	96.0	3.7	0.3	0.0	0.57
Work clothes	22	95.5	4.5	0.0	0.0	14,690	91.7	7.7	0.6	0.0	1.00
Monitoring of employeesʻ health status	5	80.0	20.0	0.0	0.0	5544	90.5	8.7	0.8	0.0	0.39
Instruction, guidance and training of personnel	5	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	4118	93.5	5.8	0.8	0.0	1.00
Verification of hygiene proficiency	8	75.0	25.0	0.0	0.0	8725	95.7	4.1	0.2	0.0	0.06
Hygiene of food production or handling
Risk management in production	2	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1109	97.5	2.0	0.5	0.0	1.00
Packaging	1	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1550	97.5	2.4	0.1	0.0	-^e
Food temperature management
Storage of foodstuffs	20	95.0	5.0	0.0	0.0	13,018	95.0	4.6	0.3	0.0	0.64
Cold-stored foodstuffs	23	91.3	8.7	0.0	0.0	15,429	83.9	14.0	2.1	0.0	0.86
Hot-stored foods	6	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	5617	94.7	4.5	0.7	0.0	1.00
Chilling	16	75.0	25.0	0.0	0.0	5270	75.8	20.2	4.0	0.0	0.87
Temperature management in production	2	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	397	97.7	2.0	0.3	0.0	1.00
Sale and serving
Separation of product groups and hygiene during selling and serving	13	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	8223	98.9	0.9	0.2	0.0	1.00
Management of shelf-life and sale period of products in sale of foods	4	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2545	86.7	11.2	2.1	0.0	1.00
Management of shelf-life and sale period of products in serving of foods	18	72.2	16.7	11.1	0.0	11,716	86.6	11.0	2.5	0.0	0.05
Substances causing allergies or intolerances
Separation and cross-contamination	14	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	12,460	97.1	2.8	0.1	0.0	1.00
Information provided on foods
General labelling	9	88.9	11.1	0.0	0.0	2719	94.4	5.4	0.2	0.0	0.41
Packaging materials and food contact materials
Packaging materials and other food contact materials	2	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	3826	95.9	4.1	0.0	0.0	1.00
Transport of foods
Reception of foodstuffs	15	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	9644	88.0	10.3	1.7	0.0	0.53
Temperature management in transport	5	80.0	0.0	20.0	0.0	1294	86.9	10.2	2.8	0.1	0.21
Traceability and recalls
Traceability of foodstuffs	4	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	3956	98.6	1.3	0.1	0.0	1.00
Recalls	2	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1753	99.2	0.8	0.0	0.0	1.00
Food testing
Sampling referred to in the own-check plan	4	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	4433	90.1	9.2	0.7	0.0	1.00
Actions taken based on test results	1	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2432	97.2	2.7	0.1	0.0	-^5
Display of the Oiva report
Display of the Oiva report	11	90.9	9.1	0.0	0.0	6251	92.7	7.2	0.1	0.0	0.56

^aOiva items inspected during at least one routine inspection prior to the outbreak in outbreak establishments in institutional catering.

^bResults of the most recent routine inspections prior to the outbreak.

^cResults of one randomly selected routine inspection per each control establishment.

^dP-values according to Fisherʻs exact test.

^eCould not be computed.

Table 5. Grades of latest routine inspection before the outbreak in outbreak establishments associated to outbreaks with A, B or C as strength of evidence in Finland in 2015–2018, and one randomly selected routine inspection per each control establishment in restaurants.

Oiva item^a	Number and grade (%) of outbreak establishments^b					Number and grade (%) of control establishments^c					p
	n	Excellent	Good	To be corrected	Poor	n	Excellent	Good	To be corrected	Poor
Own-check plan
Own-check plan and its controllability	30	81.1	5.4	13.5	0.0	8828	78.1	11.5	10.2	0.2	0.50^e
Adequacy of the own-check plan	24	70.8	25.0	4.2	0.0	6428	72.6	23.9	3.5	0.0	0.78^e
Suitability, adequacy and maintenance of facilities and equipment
Suitability of facilities for use as food premises	37	83.8	16.2	0.0	0.0	8956	77.2	16.9	5.8	0.1	0.29^d
Condition of premises	42	83.3	16.7	0.0	0.0	9017	73.0	23.3	3.7	0.0	0.22^d
Working utensils, fixtures and equipment	42	78.6	19.0	2.4	0.0	8956	77.9	18.3	3.7	0.0	0.92^d
Cleanliness of facilities, surfaces and equipment
General order and cleanliness of facilities	50	76.0	22.0	2.0	0.0	12,716	70.1	23.6	6.1	0.1	0.42^d
Cleanliness of working utensils and equipment	49	79.6	16.3	4.1	0.0	12,487	82.8	13.7	3.4	0.0	0.86^d
Cleanliness of the space for cleaning equipment and cleaning equipment	46	73.9	21.7	4.3	0.0	12,123	68.9	26.3	4.9	0.0	0.79^d
Vermin and other animals	26	92.3	3.8	3.8	0.0	3783	91.9	6.6	1.3	0.1	0.39^e
Waste management	22	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	4577	94.7	4.3	1.0	0.0	0.70^e
Actions and training of personnel
Hygiene of work practices used by personnel	41	97.6	2.4	0.0	0.0	10,732	93.9	4.9	1.2	0.1	0.83^e
Hand hygiene	46	93.5	6.5	0.0	0.0	12,253	84.3	13.2	2.4	0.0	0.22^d
Work clothes	45	88.9	11.1	0.0	0.0	11,890	76.3	20.5	3.2	0.0	0.11^d
Monitoring of employeesʻ health status	17	64.7	29.4	5.9	0.0	4085	66.7	25.5	7.7	0.1	0.92^e
Instruction, guidance and training of personnel	5	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	2137	89.5	7.6	2.9	0.0	1.00^e
Verification of hygiene proficiency	31	83.9	12.9	3.2	0.0	6979	86.5	11.0	2.5	0.0	0.63^e
Hygiene of food production or handling
Risk management in production	6	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	893	87.0	9.1	3.7	0.2	1.00^e
Packaging	6	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1048	91.0	6.9	2.1	0.0	1.00^e
Food temperature management
Storage of foodstuffs	37	78.4	21.6	0.0	0.0	9657	81.9	15.0	3.0	0.1	0.31^d
Cold-stored foodstuffs	49	63.3	22.4	14.3	0.0	12,578	66.4	23.2	10.3	0.1	0.70^d
Hot-stored foods	17	70.6	29.4	0.0	0.0	4621	79.9	14.3	5.8	0.1	0.22^e
Chilling	31	71.0	12.9	16.1	0.0	6317	54.3	30.1	15.5	0.1	0.10^d
Temperature management in production	2	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	214	98.1	1.9	0.0	0.0	1.00^e
Quick-freezing	1	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1128	81.6	13.3	5.1	0.0	1.00^e
Sale and serving
Separation of product groups and hygiene during selling and serving	25	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	6547	96.6	2.9	0.5	0	1.00^e
Management of shelf-life and sale period of products in sale of foods	5	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	3240	76.9	17	5.9	0.2	0.70^e
Management of shelf-life and sale period of products in serving of foods	38	68.4	15.8	15.8	0	8479	74.1	17.6	8.2	0.2	0.25^e
Substances causing allergies or intolerances
Separation and cross-contamination	31	93.5	3.2	3.2	0.0	7379	93.8	5.4	0.8	0.0	0.29^e
Special requirements for specific food products
Foodstuffs with protected status	1	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	125	68.8	28.0	3.2	0.0	1.00^e
Information provided on foods
General labelling	9	55.6	33.3	11.1	0.0	2574	75.4	22.3	2.3	0.0	0.12^e
Nutrition labelling	1	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	36	88.9	5.6	5.6	0.0	1.00^e
Labelling of meat required by specific legislation	2	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	27	96.3	0.0	3.7	0.0	1.00^e
Packaging materials and food contact materials
Packaging materials and other food contact materials	10	90.0	10.0	0.0	0.0	3029	87.8	10.6	1.7	0.0	1.00^e
Transport of foods
Reception of foodstuffs	26	80.8	11.5	7.7	0.0	4932	80.5	15.8	3.7	0.0	0.35^e
Temperature management in transport	2	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	558	87.1	9.1	3.8	0.0	1.00^e
Traceability and recalls
Traceability of foodstuffs	9	88.9	11.1	0.0	0.0	2423	89.1	9.0	1.7	0.1	0.65^e
Labelling and traceability of beef	1	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	58	93.1	3.4	3.4	0.0	-^f
Recalls	2	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	801	97.6	2.1	0.2	0.0	1.00^e
Food testing
Sampling referred to in the own-check plan	6	66.7	16.7	16.7	0.0	1798	70.9	23.7	5.3	0.1	0.41^e
Actions taken based on test results	1	100.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	706	90.1	8.4	1.6	0.0	1.00^e
Display of the Oiva report
Display of the Oiva report	29	82.8	17.2	0.0	0.0	5000	83.2	15.6	1.1	0.0	0.86^e

^aOiva items inspected during at least one routine inspection prior to the outbreak in outbreak establishments in the category of restaurants.

^bResults of the most recent routine inspections prior to the outbreak.

^cResults of one randomly selected routine inspection per each control establishment.

^dPearson Chi-squared exact test.

^eFisherʻs exact test.

^fCould not be computed.