The purpose of this study was to examine nutrition teachers' workload, job tension, and job satisfaction. Specifically, this study investigated the influence of nutrition teachers' workload and job tension on job satisfaction. A self-administered survey was distributed via online to 240 school nutrition teachers, in Korea, from July 16 to September 5, 2016. A total of 132 respondents completed the survey. The survey asked respondents for the time required for each task, job tension, job satisfaction, and demographic information. The findings of the study indicated that nutrition teachers spent most of their time on foodservice operation/ management. Among factors affecting job satisfaction, amount of work showed the lowest score. Job tension (P<0.001) of school nutrition teachers and amount of work (P<0.01) negatively affected their job satisfaction. Moreover 'kind of work' (P<0.001), 'future of career' (0.01), and 'amount of work' (0.05) were the factors significantly affecting job satisfaction. The study offers implications for governmental policies which can improve school nutrition teachers' satisfaction with their job duties.
Humans ; Job Satisfaction* ; Korea ; Surveys and Questionnaires

After the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an explosive increase in restaurant meal delivery or takeout. The purpose of this study was to analyze the consumer perception of food safety and its influence on the purchase of delivery or takeout food from restaurants. This study, the 2020 Consumer Behavior Survey for Food (CBSF), was conducted from June 10 to August 21 2020. A total of 6,355 responses were used for the analysis. The results were as follows: First, the differences in consumer perception about food safety were analyzed according to whether they used delivery or takeout. Concern about food safety, satisfaction with dietary habits, and the ability to maintain safe dietary habits were higher in the non-user group. Except for food at home, the perception about food safety at other locations was higher in the user group. Food hazards such as antibiotics were perceived to be safer in the user group. Second, the perception of food safety affecting use of delivery or takeout was analyzed. It was found that the usage of delivery or takeout increased when the perception of the safety of home meal replacement (HMR), delivery or takeout food, and the ability to be informed about the harmful factors of agricultural products increased. The findings of this study may offer the basis for the food and food service industry to consider safety issues seriously and develop strategies to lead to feasible practices. Further, this study also supports the direction of the government toward strengthening the safety of new segments which have shown explosive growth in the COVID-19 era.

The purpose of this study was to compare differences between essential tasks and delegable tasks among public kindergarten dietitians. A survey study was conducted through a self-administered online method from November 18 to December 28, 2019. The survey consisted of essential tasks and delegable tasks, including 6 Duties, 25 Tasks, and 94 Task Elements. The survey was distributed to a sample of 500 kindergartens in Korea, after excluding incomplete surveys and outliers, and a total of 224 responses were used for the analysis. Descriptive statistics were used to compare essential tasks and delegable tasks. The results show that ‘Duty A. Nutrition Management’, ‘Duty B. Foodservice Management Practices’, ‘Duty C. Hygiene management of kindergarten foodservice’, ‘Duty D. Nutrition-Diet Education and counseling’, and ‘Duty F. Professionalism Enhancement’ were recognized as essential tasks to be performed by kindergarten dietitians. All 16 tasks elements (100.0%) in ‘Duty E. Managing snacks during semesters, and lunch/snack during breaks’ were identified as delegable tasks. In conclusion, most tasks were recognized as essential tasks to be performed by kindergarten dietitians. On the other hand, ‘Duty E. Managing Snacks during semesters, and lunch/snack during breaks’ was considered a delegable task by public-attached kindergarten dietitians. It is recommended that public-attached kindergartens should consider additional workforce related to ‘Duty E’. This study is expected to offer basic data on laws and regulations about the duties of kindergarten dietitians.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a new type of respiratory disease that has been announced as a pandemic. The COVID-19 outbreak has changed the way we live. It has also changed the food service industry. This study aimed to identify trends in the food and food service industry after the COVID-19 outbreak and suggest research themes induced by industry trends. This study investigated the industry and academic information on the food and food service industry and societal trends resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak. The most noticeable changes in the food industry include the explosive increase in home meal replacement, meal-kit consumption, online orders, take-out, and drive-through. The adoption of technologies, including robots and artificial intelligence, has also been noted. Such industry trends are discussed in this paper from a research perspective, including consumer, employee, and organizational strategy perspectives. This study reviews the changes in the food service industry after COVID-19 and the implications that these changes have rendered to academia. The paper concludes with future expectations that would come in the era of COVID-19.

This study was conducted to estimate the appropriate workforce of dietitians by type of kindergarten through the recognition survey and job analysis of the kindergarten. Nutritionists' duties were classified into 6 duties, 28 tasks and 94 task elements. The statistical data analysis was completed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) (ver. 25.0). The time spent on 6 duties, including ‘Nutrition management’ (public attached 666.24 hours/year, public independent 843.04 hours/year), ‘Foodservice management Practices’ (public attached 1,472.52 hours/year, public independent 1,298.11 hours/year), ‘Hygiene management of kindergarten foodservice’ (public attached 611.78 hours/year, public independent 607.18 hours/year), ‘Nutrition-diet education and counseling’ (public attached 340.53 hours/year, public independent 253.42 hours/year), ‘Managing snack during semesters and lunch/snacks during breaks’ (public independent 309.04 hours/year) and ‘Professionalism enhancement’ (public attached 88.86 hours/year; public independent 65.17 hours/year). Total working hours for dietitians were 3,179.94 hours/year (public attached) and 3,375.97 hours/year (public independent). The time/day ×5 days/week ×52 weeks/year calculation method using derived total working hours/year was applied to derive appropriate full-time equivalents (FTEs). The analysis showed that the public attached kindergarten’s FTEs were 1.53. The public independent's FTEs were 1.62, and the total FTEs were 1.55. This is the first study to analyze the workload of kindergarten dietitians and appropriate manpower by kindergarten establishment type. It is expected to be a valuable policy basis for efficient operation measures related to the kindergarten dietitians.

This study examined the effects of social identity (cognitive, affective, and evaluative social identity) on affective commitment and behavioral intention in premium food markets. Data were collected from customers who had visited the premium food markets within three months prior to the time of the survey. A total of 247 responses were analyzed using SPSS 25.0 for Windows. The three attributes of social identity (cognitive, affective, and evaluative social identity) had a significant positive effect on the affective commitment, while affective commitment had a positive effect on the behavioral intention in premium food markets. On the other hand, only evaluative social identity had a significant positive effect on the behavioral intention in premium food markets. These results revealed the mediating effect of affective commitment in the relationship between social identity and customers' behavioral intention. This suggests a positive affective commitment as a key factor for customers in premium food markets. The results would be applied to marketing strategies based on the attributes of premium food market customers.
Hand ; Intention ; Marketing ; Negotiating ; Social Identification

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: With the outbreak of infectious diseases, such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), public interest in health and safety has increased, and consequently, interests in food safety have been heightened too. The purpose of this study was to compare and analyze the involvement of various categories of consumers in food safety, the subjective evaluation of food safety in Korea, and the willingness of the consumers to pay extra for safe food according to their demographic and socioeconomic characteristics.MATERIALS/METHODS: This study used data from the 2020 Consumer Behavior Survey for Food provided by the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI). The subjects were 6,355 adult household members aged 19 to 75 years old. The survey was conducted from June 10th to August 21st, 2020. The data for the study were subjected to statistical analyses, including descriptive statistics, complex sample general linear model, k-means cluster, and multiple regression analyses. RESULTS: The factors affecting the willingness to pay extra for safe food were education level, occupation, monthly household income, presence of a young (teenager) household member, and the subjects’ involvement in food safety. the significant factors affecting the willingness to pay extra for safe food were sex, age, and income level for the group exhibiting a low level of involvement in food safety, while education level and presence of a young household member were the statistically significant factors for the group exhibiting a high level of involvement in food safety. CONCLUSION This study verified the differences in the factors associated with the willingness to pay extra for safe food according to the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, involvement in food safety, subjective evaluation of food safety. This study offers practical implications to the industry and government that would help in directing strategies to strengthen safe food management.

A standardized evaluation framework was developed for contract food service operations to analyze the priority of evaluation factors from the perspectives of contracting organizations (CO) and food service providers (FP). The Delphi technique and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) were used to identify and prioritize evaluation factors reflecting both perspectives. A three-round Delphi survey with 22 experts from academia and industry yielded seven evaluation areas and 46 indicators. Subsequently, an AHP survey was conducted with 40 experts (20 from CO and 20 from FP). The composite weights showed that “quality of menu and food” was rated highest by both parties (CO: 0.0699, FP: 0.0572), followed by “safe hygiene management” (CO: 0.0622, FP: 0.0366). Although CO prioritized “comfort and cleanliness of dining environment” (0.0344) and “meal distribution efficiency” (0.0341), FP emphasized “customer communication and satisfaction” (0.0316) and “food service operation management” (0.0302). By contrast, the lowest-ranked indicators included “carbon emissions management” (CO: 0.0120, FP: 0.0087), “ethical supply chain management” (CO: 0.0110, FP:0.0092), and “use of eco-friendly food materials” (CO: 0.0114, FP: 0.0101). Therefore, although traditional indicators remain dominant, sustainability and digitalization are still emerging in the evaluation framework. This study offers practical insights for enhancing objectivity and transparency in contract food service evaluation.The proposed framework integrates both perspectives, promoting mutual understanding and supporting the development of sustainable and efficient contract food service systems. Policy-level implications include aligning with public-sector evaluation models and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) mandates.

A standardized evaluation framework was developed for contract food service operations to analyze the priority of evaluation factors from the perspectives of contracting organizations (CO) and food service providers (FP). The Delphi technique and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) were used to identify and prioritize evaluation factors reflecting both perspectives. A three-round Delphi survey with 22 experts from academia and industry yielded seven evaluation areas and 46 indicators. Subsequently, an AHP survey was conducted with 40 experts (20 from CO and 20 from FP). The composite weights showed that “quality of menu and food” was rated highest by both parties (CO: 0.0699, FP: 0.0572), followed by “safe hygiene management” (CO: 0.0622, FP: 0.0366). Although CO prioritized “comfort and cleanliness of dining environment” (0.0344) and “meal distribution efficiency” (0.0341), FP emphasized “customer communication and satisfaction” (0.0316) and “food service operation management” (0.0302). By contrast, the lowest-ranked indicators included “carbon emissions management” (CO: 0.0120, FP: 0.0087), “ethical supply chain management” (CO: 0.0110, FP:0.0092), and “use of eco-friendly food materials” (CO: 0.0114, FP: 0.0101). Therefore, although traditional indicators remain dominant, sustainability and digitalization are still emerging in the evaluation framework. This study offers practical insights for enhancing objectivity and transparency in contract food service evaluation.The proposed framework integrates both perspectives, promoting mutual understanding and supporting the development of sustainable and efficient contract food service systems. Policy-level implications include aligning with public-sector evaluation models and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) mandates.

A standardized evaluation framework was developed for contract food service operations to analyze the priority of evaluation factors from the perspectives of contracting organizations (CO) and food service providers (FP). The Delphi technique and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) were used to identify and prioritize evaluation factors reflecting both perspectives. A three-round Delphi survey with 22 experts from academia and industry yielded seven evaluation areas and 46 indicators. Subsequently, an AHP survey was conducted with 40 experts (20 from CO and 20 from FP). The composite weights showed that “quality of menu and food” was rated highest by both parties (CO: 0.0699, FP: 0.0572), followed by “safe hygiene management” (CO: 0.0622, FP: 0.0366). Although CO prioritized “comfort and cleanliness of dining environment” (0.0344) and “meal distribution efficiency” (0.0341), FP emphasized “customer communication and satisfaction” (0.0316) and “food service operation management” (0.0302). By contrast, the lowest-ranked indicators included “carbon emissions management” (CO: 0.0120, FP: 0.0087), “ethical supply chain management” (CO: 0.0110, FP:0.0092), and “use of eco-friendly food materials” (CO: 0.0114, FP: 0.0101). Therefore, although traditional indicators remain dominant, sustainability and digitalization are still emerging in the evaluation framework. This study offers practical insights for enhancing objectivity and transparency in contract food service evaluation.The proposed framework integrates both perspectives, promoting mutual understanding and supporting the development of sustainable and efficient contract food service systems. Policy-level implications include aligning with public-sector evaluation models and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) mandates.