May 20, 2021. Reno/Sparks, NV – The Washoe County Health District – Food Safety Program won the 2021 Samuel J. Crumbine Consumer Protection Award for Excellence in Food Protection, an award given annually that recognizes the top food safety program in the nation.
The Health District was given the award on Wednesday by the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), which showed significant success in the Health District working with local more than 3,300 food establishments in Washoe County to provide safe food and facility conditions for residents.
“We are honored to receive the prestigious Crumbine Award,” said Kevin Dick, Washoe County District Health Officer. “The Health District – Food Safety Program strives to support, educate and engage food establishment operators to help ensure active managerial control of foodborne illness risk factors and promote the common goal of providing safe food for Washoe County residents. I’m so proud of their efforts to achieve this award and to be recognized nationally. It is a testament to the quality of our program that we are able to join the elite list of local food safety programs who have received this national award.”
According to NACCHO, the jury reviewing Crumbine Award nominations, which consisted of outstanding public health practitioners, noted several aspects of the WCHD Food Safety Program’s efforts:
- Clear and strong evidence of measurable program improvement data and public health interventions
- Achievements in solving impactful public health-centered challenges
- Strong program focus on outcomes in addition to outputs
- Impressive training programs
- Strong relationships with industry and community engagement
The Food Safety Program has focused on two key efforts to help residents access food safety information about local food establishments. The Washoe Eats mobile app, which is available on Google Play and Apple App Store, gives residents the most recent inspection information for permitted food establishments in Washoe County.
In addition, the Food Safety Program created an easy-to-understand status for each of the inspection results, which is a Pass, Conditional Pass or Closed status. More information on those statuses can be accessed here.
This award would not be possible without the commitment of all the Health District’s Environmental Health Specialists. Under the direction of Amber English and Michael Touhey, the food safety team has developed a highly effective and responsive retail food regulatory program that allows for the 21 professionals to spend approximately 40 percent of their time ensuring that the over 3,300 food establishments in Washoe County are in compliance with food safety regulations and practices.
For more information on the Environmental Health Services division of the Health District and the services provided to the community, visit our website.
The Washoe County Health District is nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board and has jurisdiction over all public health matters in Reno, Sparks, and Washoe County through the policy-making Washoe County District Board of Health. The District consists of five divisions: Administrative Health Services, Air Quality Management, Community and Clinical Health Services, Environmental Health Services and Epidemiology & Public Health Preparedness. More info can be found here.