Towards a food safety culture improvement roadmap: diagnosis and gap analysis through a conceptual framework as the first steps

Abstract

The food safety culture research field still remains limited in terms of the process needed to achieve food safety culture improvement. : This paper proposes a food safety culture diagnosis and gap analysis methodology, as the first two steps in the food safety culture improvement roadmap. The diagnosis identifies what dimensions are mature or underdeveloped, whilst the gap analysis reveals what caused some dimensions to obtain lower scores in the diagnosis. The assessment approach is different from previously described approaches that stop in the assessment phase, as it is specifically designed to form the basis for further food safety culture interventions. It includes all departments and hierarchical levels in a company, applies a multitude of different tools (subjective and objective, quantitative and qualitative) and is based on an encompassing conceptual framework, to be able to provide a credible, conceptually based, multilayered and multidimensional assessment of food safety culture maturity. The goal is not to obtain an estimation of the prevailing food safety culture maturity, but to achieve a detailed food safety culture analysis which includes the causes and reasons which led to the obtained maturity. A conceptual framework of food safety culture was developed by refining the model of De Boeck et al. (2017), using a mapping review. A mixed-method assessment was designed to evaluate a company's prevailing food safety culture (its building blocks and layers). Integration and interpretation of data collected in the mixed-method assessment was done through the proposed food safety culture gap analysis. The mixed-method assessment methodology and gap analysis were illustrated in a case study of a ready-to-eat meal producing company (SME, 73 employees, from which 13 managers). : The presented conceptual framework of food safety culture distinguishes three key building blocks, i.e. the food safety management system activities, the human-individual and the human-organizational building block, each containing multiple dimensions. The mixed-method assessment was designed as follows. A diagnostic tool was applied for the assessment of the food safety management system activities. The human-organizational building block was measured using the food safety climate self-assessment tool (De Boeck et al., 2015), a card-aided management interview and on-site evidence collection visits (observations, interviews and document analysis). The latter two tools are newly presented in this paper. The human-individual building block was assessed using validated self-assessment statements, complemented with four questions to evaluate employees' food safety knowledge objectively. The gap analysis based on the data collected in the mixed-method assessment revealed six important gaps in the prevailing food safety culture of the ready-to-eat meal producing company (case), relating to the following building blocks and embedded dimensions: FSMS activities: ‘control activities’, human-organizational building block: ‘commitment’, ‘adaptability’, ‘consistency’, ‘beliefs and values’ and ‘mission, vision and strategy’. This profound diagnosis methodology can be applied for the development of tailored improvement strategies (interventions), which is the next step in the improvement roadmap, to enhance the level of food safety culture. • A conceptual framework, diagnosis and gap analysis methodology are presented. • The assessment approach is designed to form the basis for interventions. • The diagnosis measures the dimensions' maturity through a mixed-method assessment. • The gap analysis reveals causes for lower scores obtained in the diagnosis phase. • The first two steps in the food safety culture improvement roadmap are completed.