By Gina Gomez
New York, Dec.24, (THAINDIAN NEWS) Eating out at airport restaurants while you are on your way to catch a flight might not be such a casual affair from now on. A recent study reveals that food available at airport restaurants are guilty of gross violations and food safety is something that is almost entirely neglected at these food joints.

A study undertaken by one of the leading newspaper in United States took into consideration 800 restaurants in and around 10 airports and the revelations turned out to be shocking. Following the study, it comes to light that tuna and turkey sandwiches which are available in the eating joints, are stored in warm conditions which enables the proliferation of harmful microbes. Moreover, presence of rat droppings were a common phenomenon in almost all the restaurants and raw meats were also present along with ready-to-eat items. At the same time, cleanliness does not seem to be a priority for the restaurant officials as the kitchens were found to be devoid of soaps- which raised serious doubts about the hygiene conditions of the restaurants.

David Jefferson, of the Tarrant County, Texas, health department revealed that the greatest challenge appears to be the grab-and-go sandwich, as the food that is not stored in cool conditions contributes to the growth of disease causing microbes.

At the same time, the other disease causing factors are unsatisfactory hygiene conditions as well as availability of food items even after the expiry date. Meanwhile, the revelations of the study seem all the more pertinent to United States as an estimated 76 million cases of ailments relating to food borne diseases are reported in the country each year.