Even the BBC is realizing that asking food businesses in Wales to voluntarily display the results of their inspection rating is, uh, hopeless.

The public will be able to access ratings through a searchable database, which will be overseen by the Food Standards Agency.

Food safety campaigners like Maria Battle, a senior director of Consumer Focus Wales, welcomed the principle of the scheme but said it was under-mined by the practice of voluntary display

"And if it is a low food rating – below three – then it’s very, very rare that they display their rating. And they’re the businesses that people would choose not to eat in."

However Battle and others overstate their case when they say that "Mandatory display in Los Angeles resulted in an immediate 20% reduction in food-related illnesses – people being hospitalized. That saved hundreds of thousands of pounds and also a lot of preventable human suffering."

That’s become an oft-quoted stat, especially as New York City has gone through the angst of going public, but the paper is so full of holes I’m not sure how it got published.

The real benefit of public displays of food service inspection grades is the public shame and embarrassment, which may force operators to do better, and that people talk about it, so it enhances the overall microbial food safety culture. We’ve written a couple of papers about the topic based on research we did, but they’re not published yet, so I won’t violate my own advice and do science by press release.

Professor Hugh Pennington, who chaired the inquiry into the 2005 E.coli outbreak in South Wales which claimed the life of five-year-old schoolboy Mason Jones, five years ago this week, said,

"In principle I’m a believer in having this system as a mandatory system because it is self-evident that commercial pressure on a business – like fewer customers going in – is a very strong incentive for them to up their game."

The U.K. Food Standards Agency, which also told consumers they should cook raw sprouts until they are piping hot to avoid salmonella, is confident that voluntary display will work as consumers will draw their own conclusions when businesses choose not to display their Food Hygiene Ratings.

There is no published research that I know of which supports this statement.

We have published a review of why restaurant inspection disclosure is important. And there’s a few more things coming out.

Filion, K. and Powell, D.A. 2009. The use of restaurant inspection disclosure systems as a means of communicating food safety information. Journal of Foodservice 20: 287-297.

Abstract

??The World Health Organization estimates that up to 30% of individuals in developed countries become ill from food or water each year. Up to 70% of these illnesses are estimated to be linked to food prepared at foodservice establishments. Consumer confidence in the safety of food prepared in restaurants is fragile, varying significantly from year to year, with many consumers attributing foodborne illness to foodservice. One of the key drivers of restaurant choice is consumer perception of the hygiene of a restaurant. Restaurant hygiene information is something consumers desire, and when available, may use to make dining decisions.