Military Foodservice Research Articles

Ready-to-use-item database to improve nutrition labeling program efficiency

Go for Green® (G4G 2.0) is an evidence-based, comprehensive dining facility nutrition program designed to improve access, availability, and knowledge of nutrient-dense foods for Service Members. A key component assigns codes to recipes and ready-to-use (RTU) foods and beverages to educate diners on performance impact (Green = high, Yellow = moderate, Red = low) and sodium content (Low, Moderate, High). The authors identified a gap in that RTU items were coded repetitively at local levels, which resulted in inefficient use of limited resources and coding inconsistencies. The objective was to create a database of common RTU items on the public G4G 2.0 website to decrease resources spent coding locally and maximize consistency among coded items. The authors compiled RTU items from nutrition colleagues, quality checked G4G 2.0 codes, then created a database. Stakeholders were informed via various communication methods about the database availability. New items can be coded upon request, with the database updated quarterly. The percentage of Green-coded items increased from 14 % to 18 % in one year. A publicly available, pre-coded database of RTU items streamlines G4G coding efforts, enhances coding consistency, showcases high-performance (Green) options, but also indicates the high-prevalence of Red-coded items available in military foodservice venues.

A Study of Service Design Thinking Based on Problem Solving for Social Innovation -Focused on Proposal of Military Food Service Total Platform-

A Study of Service Design Thinking Based on Problem Solving for Social Innovation -Focused on Proposal of Military Food Service Total Platform-

군 전역자들의 군 급식에 대한 인식조사: 대학교 급식경험과 비교하여

Food service is an important factor in the military. Accordingly, the Korean military has been continuously working to improve the quality and satisfaction of food service. As a result, there has been a lot of improvement in the quality and satisfaction of food service in recent years in comparison to the past. However, results from a recent survey by the Ministry of National Defense, revealed that further improvements were still needed in terms of satisfaction. In this study, a satisfaction survey was conducted for college students who had served in the military, and by analyzing this, important factors were defined for the improvement of military food service satisfaction. Results of the survey, indicated that the military food service satisfaction score was relatively lower than that of university food service. In order to improve the satisfaction of military food service, the authors suggest that there should be a system that allows a smooth flow of communication between military food service and the members. In addition, it is important to continously study trends in the civilian food service and apply them to the military food service.

Health Risks of Intestinal Parasitism in a Military Dinning Hall Food Handlers

BackgroundSeveral studies assessed health risks of intestinal parasitic infections of food handlers in the home, community and institutional settings in different parts of the world including Ethiopia. However, there is a paucity of research in the military food service setting in general and particularly in Ethiopia. This study aimed to investigate intestinal parasitic infections of food handlers and possible health risks in defense north command center food service milieu of Ethiopia.MethodsA cross-sectional survey of all food handlers (N=57) was carried out from October-December, 2018. Standardized and structured questionnaires were used to gather data on socio-demographic and potential risk factors. Intestinal parasitic infections were assessed following standard parasitological methods. Data entry and analysis were done using SPSS-20 and frequency of various parameters was determined..ResultsOf all examined 70.2% had one or two intestinal parasite infections. Out of total positive 75% had single infection. The leading parasite detected was Entamoeba histolytica (27.5%) followed by Giardia lamblia (12.5%) and Schistosoma mansoni (7.5%). The survey identified several possible risk factors for intestinal parasite infections transmissiom. These included lack of food safety training and medical checkup; poor finger nail status and hand washing practice after toilet; preparing food when suffering from diseases, inadequate kitchen facilities, unsanitary use of cutting boards, inefficient sanitizing of utensils and food contact surfaces, and using common knife for cutting raw and cooked foods were the most frequent indications for possible transmissionConclusionsRoutine parasitological tests and treatment of cases, and hygiene and environmental sanitation improvement are recommended to control possible infection transmission to the military force and others.

An Empirical Study on the Effect of Military Foodservice Satisfaction on Soldiers’ Morale

An Empirical Study on the Effect of Military Foodservice Satisfaction on Soldiers’ Morale

Development of a Milk Menu Applicable to Military Foodservice

Development of a Milk Menu Applicable to Military Foodservice

군 급식 조리 관계자의 환경 분석을 통한 급식개선 방안연구

본 논문의 목적은 군 급식의 만족도를 결정하는 요인에 대한 군 급식자 집단과 조리 관계자 집단의 인식 차이를 파악하고 조리 관계자의 직무 만족도를 분석하여 질 높은 군 급식을 제공하기 위한 방안을 마련하는 것이다. 군 급식자 집단은 군 급식의 만족도를 결정하는 1순위 요인을 맛 (52.3%)이라고 판단하였으며 조리 관계자 집단은 1순위 요인을 위생상태 (37.1%)라고 판단하였다. 조리 관계자 집단은 군 급식의 위생 및 조리 질 향상에 영향을 미치는 가장 중요한 요인은 시설 및 비품의 현대화 (30.4%)와 취사시설의 청결 위생시설 보유 (24.2%)라고 판단하였다. 조리 관계자들의 82%가 직무 만족도는 보통 이상 만족하다고 응답하였다. 조리병에 대한 타 장병들의 시선에 대해서는 조리 관계자들의 74.7%가 보통 이상 좋다고 응답하였다. 조리병에 대한 타 장병들의 시선이 군 급식의 위생 및 조리 질에 영향을 주는지에 대해서는 조리 관계자들의 93.8%가 보통 이상 그렇다고 응답하였다. 또한 동료와의 관계가 위생 및 조리 질에 영향을 주는지에 대해서는 조리 관계자들의 99.5%가 보통 이상 그렇다고 응답하였다. 직무 만족도가 향상되면 조리의 질 역시 향상될 것인가에 대해서는 조리 관계자들의 97.4%가 보통 이상 그렇다고 응답하였다. 따라서 조리병에 대한 인식을 좋게 하고 조리 관계자의 직무 만족도를 제고함으로써 군 급식의 질을 향상 향상시킬 수 있을 것으로 판단된다.

Analysis of Perception and Satisfaction of Military Foodservice that are Provided According to the Ranks of the Soldiers

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to provide the basic data for efficient operation and management of the military foodservice by analyzing the satisfaction of the quality of the foodservice and the perception of the military foodservice which are provided according to the ranks of the soldiers. Methods: A total of 252 military personnel (48 Private, 87 Private first class, 74 Corporal and 43 Sergeant) participated in Gyeonggi area from November 1 to 30, 2013, and data were analyzed by the SPSS Win (ver 18.0). Results: The perception with foodservice, variety of menu (p < 0.001), importance (p < 0.01), problem (p < 0.05) and leftover reason (p < 0.05) significantly differed by the rank of the soldiers. With regard to the satisfaction with food, there were significant difference by rank for all items (p < 0.01). Satisfaction with facilities did not indicate significant differences by rank. Satisfaction with sanitation indicated significant difference by rank in the categories of table ware (p < 0.05), process of distribution (p < 0.05), employee's uniform (p < 0.001) and drinking water (p < 0.05). Satisfaction with service indicated significant difference by rank with regard to kindness of employees (p < 0.01), providing information on foodservice (p < 0.05) and fast distribution (p < 0.01).

Randolph-Sheppard National Online Training Curriculum for Program Staff: Findings from a National Survey of Randolph-Sheppard Directors

The Randolph-Sheppard Business Enterprise Program provides employment for more than 2,300 entrepreneurs who are legally blind across the United States. Moreover, these entrepreneurs employ an additional 14,000 people, of whom almost 2,000 are visually impaired or have other disabilities (Rehabilitation Services Administration [RSA], 2010). With annual program sales of more than $800 million, the average annual income of individual entrepreneurs is approximately $60,000. Signed into law in 1936, the Randolph-Sheppard Act (20 U.S.C. [section]107 et seq) grants individuals who are legally blind the authority to operate food service facilities on federal property. With oversight from RSA, the act locates the state licensing agency for the program in the individual state vocational rehabilitation agencies across the United States. Over the years, the Randolph-Sheppard program has changed dramatically from single vendor-managed concessions and newsstands to large military food service facilities, kiosks, convenience stores, laundry facilities, restaurants, snack bars, automated vending machine operations, and other similar businesses. For a number of reasons, the Randolph-Sheppard program has seen a decline in the last two decades in the number of facilities and blind entrepreneurs. Speculations for the decline include the closing of marginal or unprofitable Randolph-Sheppard facilities by state licensing agency administrators without establishing new, more profitable locations, and the inability to find qualified candidates to replace those who retire, leave the program, or are promoted to other facilities (Schaefer, 2003). Moore (2005) suggested that the disparity among states in either having too many facilities without qualified candidates to run them or too many qualified candidates without locations to place them, coupled with the inability of blind entrepreneurs to easily transition across state programs to align these disparities, is also a contributing factor to the overall decline. In an effort to expand and improve the effectiveness of the Randolph-Sheppard program, stakeholders (for example, the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind, consumer groups, and state licensing agency administrators) in collaboration with RSA joined together in the development of five performance goals (National Council of State Agencies for the Blind, 1997). Goal 3 addressed national training initiatives including the development of training for Randolph-Sheppard staff members. More recently, the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind passed Resolution #2010-1 (2010), noting that the goals outlined in 1997 had not been accomplished, and calling upon RSA to make resources available to initiate activities in reaching those goals. Our purpose is to report research activities in support of Goal 3 that will culminate in the development of a national online training curriculum for Randolph-Sheppard staff members. The state licensing agency staff members who are specifically responsible for the state's Randolph-Sheppard program generally include a program director, who is responsible for overall program management; business consultants (counselors or specialists), who have multiple responsibilities in direct support of individual entrepreneurs; and other administrative and support staff members, who are responsible for activities related to equipment, initial and upward mobility training, accounting, payroll, contracts, and the like. The only national training package developed for program staff members was funded by RSA during the 1980s. Published in 1985 by the West Virginia Research and Training Center, the Randolph-Sheppard Management System (Minton, Spann, & Weston, 1985) is an instructional training package that includes 15 modules for self-study. The modules address different aspects of the program such as management of facilities, development of new facilities, merchandising, food safety, purchasing, working with individuals who are blind, and the Randolph-Sheppard laws. …

Application of Analytical Hierarchy Process in Analyzing the Priorities of Strategy for Improving the Army Military Foodservice

The current exploratory study presents the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) as a potential decision-making method to obtain the relative weights of alternatives through pairwise comparison in the context of hierarchical structure. The aim of this study was to elicit prior strategy to improve army military foodservice. Content analysis and seven times of in-depth interview from 13 officers of the Ministry of National Defense were conducted to develop the hierarchical structure for AHP analysis. Questionnaires were distributed to 61 foodservice managers and 39 dietitian and military foodservice officers. The highest-ranked strategy for improving military foodservice was the ‘renewal of the kitchen facilities’ (0.2578), followed by ‘enlargement of foodservice operating staffs’ (0.2345), ‘specialization of sanitation & foodservice management’ (0.2222), ‘Practical foodservice budget control’ (0.1394), and ‘menu variety & standardized recipe’ (0.1281). ‘Enlargement of foodservice facilities’ (0.3995), ‘increase the no. of kitchen police’ (0.3463), ‘sanitary & cooking training reinforcement of kitchen police’ (0.4445), ‘management of foodservice budget by total amount’ (0.5043), and ‘standardization of mass cooking’ (0.3571) were the highest overweight item in each strategy. The study also compared the relative weights of alternatives of foodservice managers with that of dietitians and military foodservice officers. Those two groups revealed some difference in their priority of important strategy regarding army military foodservice. The results of this study would provide the data for making a policy or compilation of the budget regarding army military foodservice. (Korean J Community Nutr 19(1) : 51~59, 2014)

Sanitation Practices among Food Handlers in a Military Food Service Institution, Malaysia

This study was conducted over a period of two months to assess the food hygiene practices among food handlers in a military food service institution that have been trained with food safety practices and knowledge. Since limited data was published for the services rendered to governmental agencies such as the military, this study was conducted to determine the level of knowledge, attitude and motivation of food handlers under this institution that was responsible for the provision of food to the armed forces in Malaysia. Findings from this study offered an insight for food sanitation practices and influence of the authority towards food service institutions under the policy of voluntary HACCP practices.

Insuring Quality Service

ABSTRACT Air Force Services' lodging and foodservice activities on military bases use limited service quality measurement tools to determine customer perceptions of service quality. Bases do not consider using mystery-shopping programs because of the significant resources required to start the program. The objectives of this study were to design a prototype mystery shopper program for Air Force Services that included recruiting and training of shoppers, recognition of employees, and to test, evaluate, and modify the Air Force Services mystery shopper program, based on the results of the prototype program. Knowledge gained from the prototype program can be applied to independent hospitality operations, along with other military lodging and foodservice programs.

Gender Differences in Food Preferences of Young Men and Women in the Armed Forces

Food preferences of Americans have changed over recent years, requiring changes in menus offered by food establishments. One large population group which is provided meals in a cafeteria setting is the military. Making menu changes and providing acceptable menus which meet dietary guidelines for members of the Armed Forces involves determining changes in food preferences. A four-page survey was designed to address demographics of respondents, ethnic food preferences, and hedonic ratings for 62 foods representing a variety of food categories and food preparation methods. Questionnaires were distributed to service members at two military bases during meal service; of 690 questionnaires distributed, 662 (95.9%) were returned. The majority of respondents (64.1%) were 18-21 years old; 38.2% were women and 61.8% men. Prior to military service respondents lived in all areas of the country, with 19% from the Atlantic, 15% from the Middle Atlantic, and 17% from the West South Central regions accounting for the majority. The most popular ethnic food categories were Italian (rating 7.3 - men, 7.1 - women), Mexican (rating 6.7 - men, 7.0 - women), and Chinese (rating 6.4 - men, 6.7 - women), which reflect current U.S. trends. Women gave higher ratings for vegetarian foods (5.8) than men (4.6). More frequent consumption of “Low-calorie/Diet food” was reported by women; selection of “Power/Energy” food was more frequent for men. No gender differences were reported in frequency of “Heart Healthy/Low Cholesterol.” or “Fast Foods/ Convenience Foods”. Women preferred chicken dishes to pork and beef; baked and broiled fish had low acceptability by both genders; men gave higher ratings for spicy recipes. These results show the importance of evaluating consumer preferences and gender differences among consumers to maintain participation levels in military foodservice operations. Food preference ratings should be an integral part of menu development.

Comparing Computer and Traditional Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point System Training Methods

LEARNING OUTCOME: To examine the effectiveness of two versions-paper versus computer-of a Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point training plan developed for instructing experienced food service personnel.An independent study training plan on the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) system was developed and evaluated. It was intended for training enlisted military personnel having approximately seven or more years of work experience in Air Force medical food service facilities. Both a paper-version and a computer-version were developed, and their effectiveness was determined using a pre-test, independent training, and post-test format. Computer-attitude was also determined using a modification to another researcher's questionnaire.A pilot test was first conducted on 29 college students. The training plans were then revised based on observation and feedback. The actual research study was then conducted on 69 experienced hospital food service personnel. Participants were randomly assigned to take either the paper- or computer-version of the training.Both versions of the research study revealed significant increases from pre- to post-test scores (i.e., overall average score for the pre-test was 48.0%, while it was 72.4% for the post-test), with no significant difference between the overall effectiveness of the two versions. However, there were different degrees of pre- to post-test score improvement seen for each test question, indicating the need for further validation of the tests’ reliability, or possible changes required in the training plans. All post-test subjects correctly answered that there are seven steps to HACCP, but pre- versus post-test responses were actually better on two questions regarding the acronym HACCP and critical control points. The overall attitude toward computers was 3.72 on a scale of 1 to 5, indicating a generally positive attitude among participants. This training plan, with minor modifications, will be a valuable educational tool that can be used in commercial as well as military food service facilities.

A Comparative Analysis of Quantity and Type of Waste Generated in Institutional Foodservice Operations

The management of solid waste in foodservice operations is becoming more important as the cost of waste disposal increases and consumer knowledge of environmental issues increases. The objective of this study was to develop a profile of the composition of solid waste generated in different types of foodservice operations. A series of waste stream analyses were conducted in different types of institutional foodservice operations including college and university foodservice, extended care facilities, and military foodservice operations. Waste stream analyses were used to determine the amount and type of waste being generated by weight, volume, and collapsed volume of materials discarded. Significant differences existed among the three college and university foodservice operations. The facility with a centralized production facility and bakery generated significantly more waste per meal than the operation with limited on-site production. Significant differences (p≤.0.05) also were found among the different types of institutional foodservice operations. The two distinct populations were university foodservice and extended care and military. The university operations generated significantly less food waste (0.34lbs/meal), packaging waste (0.14lbs/meal), and total waste/meal (0.48lbs/meal) than the other group (0.70lbs/meal food waste, 0.28lbs/meal packaging waste, and 0.98lbs/meal total waste). Factors such as type of service system, type of packaging materials, and age and gender of customers influenced the quantity of waste generated. Data from this study provide valuable information for foodservice operators for developing and implementing waste reduction programs. Results of this study could be used in estimating type of waste generated in other similar operations.

Human Factors and Environmental Design in Military Food Service Facilities; a Survey Approach

More than 2000 enlisted military personnel from three Air Force bases and one Army post were surveyed in order to elicit customer opinions about human factors and environmental design considerations in the food service facilities. It was discovered that speed of service, which includes both delay at a headcount signature station and in the serving line itself, was a major problem. Other problem areas were military atmosphere present, temperature, noise, crowding, and decor. The relevance of consumer opinion survey information in channeling human factors and environmental design efforts is emphasized.

The Food Service Worker in the Military Dining Facility: Job Satisfaction, Training, and Human Factors

Surveys and interviews were administered to both civilian and military food service workers at two Air Force bases to assess job satisfaction, opinions about environmental and equipment features relevant to potential human factors problems, and opinions about additional training. Results indicated that while military personnel were somewhat more unhappy about their work, civilian workers also expressed dissatisfaction. Overall, the workers were least satisfied with promotions, pay, and the work itself; and more satisfied with their co-workers and supervisors. In the human factors area, workers were particularly concerned with the heat in their kitchens and the inadequacy (both agewise and qualitywise) of their equipment. Several young military workers expressed a desire to leave the food service area. A recommendation for the inclusion of the worker-human factors analysis in future assessments of food service systems is made.