By Kalena Reynolds | Arts & Life Editor, Maryn Small | Broadcast Reporter
On Feb. 3, Penland Dining Hall received an 80 on a health inspection, an 18-point decline from Penland’s previous low of 98.
LTVN’S Maryn Small has more details.
A health inspection, conducted twice to four times per year depending on the risk level of the establishment, grades an establishment’s compliance with food safety laws. Texas uses a numerical grading system for its inspections, starting at 100 and deducting points for each violation found. If the inspector finds enough violations to lower the score to a 69 or below, the establishment fails.
Rumors circulated on a Baylor Facebook parents and families group that Penland failed its inspection because employees failed to wash their hands after using the restroom, and yogurt was kept at an incorrect temperature. Jennifer Crawford, vice president of operations for Baylor Eats, said these rumors are false, though Penland recently scored lower than ever on its health inspection.
Penland received minor point deductions for improper handwashing and improper temperature regulation of foods. Crawford disproved rumors of employees failing to wash their hands after using the restroom.
“The specific violation in regards to hand washing was a hand sink at the grill station that did not have sufficient cold water flow,” Crawford said. “It was felt by the inspector that the water was too hot to completely and thoroughly wash hands when handling food.”
Crawford elaborated, saying that the rumor that yogurt or dairy products are not kept at a safe temperature is also false.
“There were some products on the line that were found to be out of temp, specifically the salsa at La Mesa, and it was at the beginning of lunch shift,” Crawford said. “Our salsas are made from scratch, and they should be chilled before going on the line, and so it temped much higher than it should be. So they just didn’t follow the proper cooling procedures, but it had not been out for a significant amount of time.”
Crawford said that the cold water at the hand-washing sink was re-inspected and received a 100.
At the time of the inspection, all issues had been resolved, Crawford said.
“Because of the severity of some of those … the cold water to the hand washing sink being one of those, it did require re-inspection,” Crawford said. “At that time, we received a perfect score … but even as a result, we’ve reinforced training and communication with our staff to ensure the safety of our students.”
Crawford said that to provide students with the best possible experience, they have added more training for their associates, including information on glove changes and handwashing.
According to Crawford, Penland has a cloud-based cooling system, so anytime a cooler goes out of temp, they get alerts before there is a risk of spoiled food.
“Even while it’s on the line, they have a temperature process,” Crawford said. “So we’ve been just being a little more vigilant, following up on that, ensuring that our associates are correctly trained in recording temperatures.”
As Penland continues to improve safety measures, Crawford encouraged students to voice any concerns with her or a leader on duty.
“We currently have not seen any health risk,” Crawford said. “We closely monitor food handling, temperatures, production and so we feel confident to say that students can dine safely with us.”
Houston freshman Darby Lane said the recent inspection score is concerning.
“As a freshman, we have to eat at a dining hall, so we are kinda putting all our trust into them and what they are serving us,” Lane said.
Lane explained she has taken a more cautious approach to dining in the dining halls.
“[I’m] taking a second to think about, ‘Am I going to be OK if I eat this or is it going to be good?’” Lane said.
College Station freshman Ariana Hinojosa said she recently heard many people were getting sick from Penland.
“I don’t know if I feel fully safe eating [at Penland],” Hinojosa said. “I’m definitely a big germaphobe, so my food being clean is top priority. There can definitely be preventative measures set up.”
