THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, November 25, 1994 TAG: 9411250097
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PATRICIA WINTERS, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
LENGTH: Short : 40 lines
If fast food makes you sick to your stomach, then here's something else to digest.
Nearly half of 1,000 fast food joints surveyed by the nationally syndicated TV show ``American Journal'' were cited for at least one violation that the Food and Drug Administration says could cause food-borne illness.
The show surveyed 1,000 health inspection reports from 100 fast-food chains nationwide and found 16 percent violated regulations to keep food at the proper temperatures; 155 had toxic items mislabeled or improperly stored near food; 10 percent had inadequate pest controls, and 8 percent were cited for handling food improperly and poor employee hygiene practices.
Hardees ranked at the bottom of the survey with 57 of the 100 restaurants surveyed cited for at least one violation.
Taco Bell, meanwhile, came out with the least ``critical violations'': 33 of 100 surveyed. Burger King and McDonald's also did well. Burger King had 41 restaurants cited, while McDonald's had 42.
Hardees, in a written statement that airs on the show, said the chain ``has zero tolerance when it comes to anything that would compromise the safety and quality of food we serve our customers.''
Other chains surveyed included Subway; KFC; Dairy Queen; Wendy's; Little Caesar's pizza and Pizza Hut. All the chains said they cooperate fully with health officials to correct problems.
KEYWORDS: FAST FOOD RESTAURANT by CNB