In November of last year, inspectors from the health department in Kansas City, Missouri, discovered 37 critical violations at the concessions stands of the Kauffman and Arrowhead Stadiums. Among the problems were long-expired foods and foods that had not been date-marked, foods that had been kept at unsafe temperatures, and signs of pest contamination. The health department’s surprise inspection occurred after a tip-off from Jon Costa, the food safety manager at the Kauffman and Arrowhead Stadiums. According to Costa, the poor food safety practices noted at the concessions stands were habitual, and employees at the stands were not required to act on his food safety recommendations.
The health department inspection took place on November 3rd, a day after the Kansas City Chiefs played the New York Jets at the Arrowhead stadium. Naser Jouhari, division manager at the Kansas City Health Department, said that it appeared that food handlers at the stands had “just flipped the switch off [after the game], and they walked out without doing any cleaning or removing any of the food items.” Although these conditions don’t necessarily reflect the state of the concessions stands before and during the games, when food was being prepared and served, these practices still raise serious concern because improperly cleaned and discarded food attracts pests, which often carry dangerous bacteria and viruses on their bodies.
When the concessions stands were re-inspected a week later, all food safety violations had been corrected. Jouhari recommends that fans use common sense when they purchase food at sporting events. “Look at the floor of that concession stand. That can give you a clear idea of how that food service operates. You can easily predict what’s going on in a kitchen from going into their lobby and the restrooms and seeing the cleanliness of that establishment.”
—Katie Heil
