Fight BAC!

Fight BAC! is a food safety campaign run by the Partnership for Food Safety Education (PFSE). According to PFSE, tens of millions of illnesses in the United States each year are caused by foodborne bacteria, and the Food and Drug Administration estimates that two to three percent of foodborne illnesses lead to long term illnesses. The Fight BAC! campaign was created to educate the public about four basic practices - clean, separate, cook and chill - that reduce the risk of foodborne illness.

The campaign utilizes BAC, a mascot that looks like a friendly cartoon bacterium, on all of its materials in order to give the campaign personality and make it more memorable for adults and children. All promotional materials, such as fliers, educational kids activities, and presentations are available online and can be accessed by educators, consumers, and public health officials. Many of the materials are available in Spanish. One Fight BAC! flier lists safe cooking temperatures for a variety of foods, facts about foodborne bacteria and illnesses, and directions about how to follow the four steps clean, separate, cook and chill.

The goal of the Fight BAC! campaign is to educate the public about four basic practices - clean, separate, cook and chill - that reduce the risk of foodborne illness.

The study showed that culturally competent, social marketing campaigns are likely to improve awareness, knowledge, and attitudes around food safety among Latino consumers.

A study to assess consumer satisfaction and the influence of the Fight BAC! campaign on knowledge, attitudes and behaviors related to food safety was conducted in 2000. The campaign was implemented in a Latino population in Hartford, Connecticut by the Connecticut Family Nutrition Program for Infants, Toddlers and Children. This implementation of the Fight BAC! campaign used culturally appropriate methods and was delivered in both English and Spanish to predominantly low-income Latinos, specifically children and caretakers. The campaign’s message was spread through radio, TV, newspapers, brochures, posters, and coloring books.

The campaign was evaluated through a comparison of pre- and post-intervention surveys administered to 500 people living in the campaign area of Hartford in households with at least one child aged 12 or younger. The surveys assessed satisfaction with the campaign as well as food safety knowledge, attitudes and behaviors. Of the survey respondents, 73% reported that they had been exposed to at least one campaign method and were highly satisfied. A significantly higher proportion of respondents recognized the Fight BAC! mascot after the campaign compared to baseline (42% vs, 10%, P<0.001). Those who were exposed to the campaign were more likely to have a higher food safety score than those who did not (OR=3.54, 95% CI 1.74-7.18, p<0.001), and they were also more likely to follow the campaign’s recommendations and defrost meat in the refrigerator (p=0.01).