Doug’s most recent post on BarfBlog emphasized the need for public communications about food safety to be rapid, reliable, repeated and relevant. He noted that the produce outbreaks of 2006 marked significant changes in how stories were being told on Internet-based networking like YouTube, wikipedia, and blogs.

The Internet is a wild world. And while companies are paying think tanks big bucks to brainstorm strategies to reach the millions of people that are flocking to new platforms like YouTube, Facebook, MySpace and the blogosphere, it would be wise to pay attention to what is already being said.

The Panera Bread Co. group for example, has a message board discussing the, "Nastiest things you’ve (employees) found in the bathroom!!!" — great for advertising.

Last night (while I was sleeping), a kitchen employee commented on a Barfblog post that I created to highlight how restaurant inspection reports are made public in Manhattan, Kansas. He had the following to say:

"Everything that article mentions is true, and I KNOW from experience there have been an Incalcuable amount of unrecorded violations that occur in that disgusting kitchin. I know because I’ve cooked there since february."

SO… do you know what is being said online about your business? And how would you/are you dealing with the discussion?