Dear Miss Liza,

Spring Break is over and I had a great time! Now it’s back to the books!  My favorite college basketball team did make it to the big dance… March Madness! I can’t wait see my team play, plus I love the food at the concession stands. Do you have a favorite team? I noticed you wear a lot of “purple and gold”. Are you an ECU fan… LSU… Northwestern… Tarboro High… what?

Kellyn

Dear Kellyn,

I just like wearing purple, such a “royal” color! I’m not a big college basketball fan but I have noticed the concession stand workers at these events. Often times, concession stand workers are volunteers and receive little to no training in food safety. ESPN did an “Outside the Lines” segment highlighting the over 100 North American arenas and stadiums that were home to Major League Baseball, National Football League, National Hockey League and National Basketball Association teams in 2009. They found some major and critical food safety violations that could pose a risk for foodborne illnesses that can make someone sick, or, in extreme cases, become fatal. Think about the hundreds of burgers, brats, hot dogs, sodas sold at these venues. Then combine that with limited space, part-time workers and the need to get food out quickly, all can lead to a major problem. Thankfully, there hasn’t been a documented case (to my knowledge) of a massive foodborne outbreak associated with food prepared at a professional stadium. One of the most worrisome violations to health inspectors is food not being cooked, reheated or held at safe temperatures. So… cheer for your basketball team but also cheer for the team behind the counter preparing the food! ”Push ‘em back… push ’em back… way back!” Oh, sorry… that’s a football cheer!  Bye!

Miss Liza