Author: Kelee Hansen, Janet Anderson, Candice Randall

Source: Unpublished Data

Methodology: Two hundred people from Utah, residents of Cache, Box Elder, Iron, and Utah counties, participated in the study. A comparable number of participants were recruited from each location. Participants reflected the overall demographics of the area, which is predominately Caucasian. Participants were from varying socioeconomic status. A survey was conducted with each participant to assess their knowledge of meat thermometers and to evaluate their reported food handling practices.

Summary: Participants recognized the need to use meat thermometers when cooking to determine the doneness of meat. However, nearly two-thirds of participants in the study did not own a thermometer. Of those with a thermometer available, the majority rarely used it during cooking and less that 20% of participants know recommended final cooking temperatures for meat. Moreover, half of consumer’s thermometers yield inaccurate results.

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