BENNETT CAMPUS CENTER (LN)- Swift action corrected the problems that led to the state health department giving a failing grade to Lipscomb’s food court after a March 24 inspection.
The food court grade leaped from a 68 to an 87 after the re-inspection April 16.
Only one of the failing marks involved food itself, and all of the problems have been addressed, according to university officials, who quickly responded after the failing grade was issued.
“It is important to know that the majority of the issues were corrected the same day Sodexo received the score, and as of this week every other problem has been fixed,” said Jeff Wilson, associate dean of Campus Life.
Click here for the inspection report.
The state of Tennessee uses a 44-item inspection with a maximum score of 100. Thirteen items are considered to be the most important, and if they fail to meet standards, a follow-up inspection must be done to ensure everything has been corrected.
“We were due for the inspection this past Tuesday, but as of today, April 8, the health inspector has not been back,” said Michael Sullivan, executive chef for Sodexo Dining Services at Lipscomb. “The last time we spoke to the health inspector, she said she was not real worried about the score and believes it will receive a much better grade this time. Sodexo has been monitoring for corrections since the inspection and is ready for the next visit.”
The food court had 19 issues that resulted in the failing grade. Of those, only one of them had to do with food; the rest were for things like paint peeling on the walls behind a sink and missing ceiling tiles. The food court lost five points in each of the following categories:
- Food protection — Potentially hazardous food meets temperature requirements during storage, preparation, display, service, transportation
- Plumbing — Cross-connection, back siphonage, backflow
- Other categories — Toxic items properly stored, labeled, used
“It is not excuse for a low grade, but I would rather the problem be with utensils than problems with the food itself,” Wilson said. “I am confident that Sodexo can fix this problem for us.”
In recent years, every location that Lipscomb has had inspected has passed with high scores, many in the upper 90s. Every place that serves food must be inspected.
A single score on the campus’ biyearly visit from the health department does not indicate the quality of the facility being inspected, but should be viewed more of an assessment score for that day. It forces the food provider to keep up on the value and quality of the services as a whole.
On the same day the food court grade was issued, the on-campus Starbucks received a 98, and Subconnection received a 97.
Here are other 2010 results across campus, according to the Tennessee Department of Health:
- Arlo’s, March 24 — 97
- Common Ground, March 24 — 96
- High school cafeteria, March 31 — 92
- Elementary school cafeteria, March 23 — 84
Records of previous inspections from Lipscomb or any other food service establishments are public records and can be found at http://tn.state.gegov.com/tennessee/.