Look inside inspection reports examining fair food safety

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Amid rides, livestock and fried food, the last thing you want at the fair is to get sick. Columbus Public Health is making sure that doesn’t happen.

Their team checks every single food and drink stand on the fairgrounds, and NBC4 Investigates looked at inspection reports for a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into keeping fairgoers safe.

The process started months ago, and now Columbus Public Health is making sure each stand has its stamp of safety. It starts with knowing where each stand will be, and before the fair opened, inspectors began making their rounds.

"We had staff come out Monday and start doing what we call some pre-licensing to make sure that everybody is getting licensed and getting ready to go," CPH Environmental Health Supervisor Robert Acquista said. 

Those green signs visitors see indicate a stand has been inspected, with inspectors ensuring a number of safety protocols are in place.

"We start looking at handling, making sure that handling is being done properly, making sure that people are wearing gloves when they're doing ready-to-eat foods, make sure temperatures are being cooked properly," Acquista said. 

It also means making sure food is cooked the right way. NBC4 Investigates looked through the reports for the last two days of inspections. Columbus Public Health says it’s usually smooth sailing at the fair and the documents showed the same.

"We have normal issues that we run into," Acquista said. 

One report showed a stand with hot dogs at the wrong temperature. Those were thrown out. Another did not have a way to sanitize dishes. They were approved to operate only after fixing this.

"That's why we're here, is to come out and to educate and talk to the operators about making sure the temperatures are where they should be, making sure they're handling food the proper way," Acquista said. 

Schmidt’s has been serving at the Ohio State Fair for 110 years; this is second nature.

"This is our comfort zone this came before the restaurant, before the food trucks," Schmidt's General Manager of Fairs and Festivals Drew Karram said. 

The temperature of meats, fridges and freezers are all checked to make sure what customers buy is safe to eat.

"You can have the best food in the world, you can have the nicest customer service but if your food isn't up to code, if your food gets someone sick that’s a real problem," Karram said. 

For Schmidt’s, safety is key, and with stands all over the fair, it’s all hands on deck.

"I mean, honestly, it's pretty simple. You don't want to get anyone sick," Karram said. 

Usually, the inspection reports are digital. However, the city’s cybersecurity incident took down many systems, including for Columbus Public Health.

It’s taken them a little longer to inspect every stand as they have to write each report by hand; however, say this is how they used to do things so there has not been a major disruption to the process.