Evaluation of the Handling Practices and Risk Perceptions of Dried Wood Ear Mushrooms in Asian Restaurants in the United States

• Published in: Journal of food protection 2024-01, Vol.87 (1), p.100198-100198, Article 100198
• Main Authors: Chen, Han, Kontor-Manu, Elma, Zhu, Haohui, Cheng, Gloria, Feng, Yaohua
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agaricales; Asian restaurants; Auricularia; Dried wood ear mushrooms; Food Contamination - analysis; Food Handling - methods; Food Ingredients; Food safety education; Foodborne Diseases - epidemiology; Humans; Low-moisture foods; Restaurants; Risk communication; United States
• ISSN: 0362-028X; 1944-9097
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jfp.2023.100198

•Many participants did not keep a record of package information for potential recall.•Many participants reported using cold water for rehydration.•Wood ear mushrooms used as a topping of ramen were not always heat treated.•Food handlers’ challenges in behavioral changes were identified from the interviews. In late 2020, dried wood ear mushrooms, a low-moisture food ingredient that had been imported and sold to restaurants, were linked to a foodborne outbreak of Salmonella Stanley, which sickened 55 individuals across the United States. These mushrooms are commonly used in Asian cuisine. It is unclear if the contaminated dried wood ear mushrooms that caused the foodborne illnesses were improperly handled during preparation. The objectives of this study are to assess the handling practices, risk perceptions, and food recall experiences of dried wood ear mushrooms in restaurant kitchens among Asian restaurant managers and chefs. We conducted a series of telephone interviews with managers and chefs of Asian restaurants in the United States who used dried wood ear mushrooms in making dishes. After reaching information saturation, a total of 25 restaurant managers and chefs participated in the interview. Our results showed that 76% of the participants did not keep track of package information, such as expiration date and lot number, and many participants reported using cold water for rehydration. Wood ear mushrooms were blanched before being used in all cold dishes and most stir-fry dishes, but less commonly in stew or ramen. Some participants (16%) did not view dried wood ear mushrooms as a raw food ingredient, and 16% did not perceive that low-moisture food ingredients constituted microbiological food safety risks. The majority of the participants had heard of food recalls, but only 17% knew about the dried wood ear mushroom recall, and even fewer had heard of food recalls of other low-moisture foods, like nuts and seeds (9%), and flour (4%). While this study shares similarities with previously published studies evaluating the handling practices of consumers and restaurant employees with respect to meat and poultry, it makes a distinctive contribution to the field of food safety as the first-of-its-kind to study the handling practices of a low-moisture food ingredient: dried wood ear mushrooms. This unique ethnic food ingredient has been associated with a past outbreak and multiple recalls in the United States. The findings of the study show the need to develo