Real-Life Decision Making
You've just completed a routine inspection of the meat department at a tiny local supermarket. Refrigeration and stock rotation are in perfect order.
However, you've got a T-bone in your hand that appears to have what looks like a coarse black hair trapped beneath the plastic wrapping. As a food inspector, you're aware that this is drastically substandard.
Ivor Wright is a regional coordinator with a food inspection agency. He says that food inspectors simply "know what the standards are for various products. So, what they do is look at the product and say, 'Does that product meet the standards?' If it doesn't, you divert it."
Other than the hair, everything seems to be in good order. You've never had problems with this supermarket in the past. As you shake hands with the owner, Mrs. McPhee, you ask, "You get your meat supply from Bruno's Packing Plant down the street, is that right?"
"We do indeed! Been getting meat from Bruno for 28 years now and I can't say I've ever had a problem," says Mrs. McPhee. She puts her hand on your shoulder, taking the T-bone from your hand and escorting you out the door.
McPhee's behavior leads you to suspect there may be a problem at the packing plant that she doesn't want you to know about. She is, after all, great friends with Bruno, the owner.
Before you leave, you ask to see the T-bone, with the intention of pointing out the hair. As you start to open your mouth, scrutinizing the package, you realize the hair is gone.
Has it disappeared into the steak? Or was it a figment of your imagination? It is, after all, the end of the day and your glasses are pretty dirty.
Doing an inspection of the packing plant will cost you, the inspection agency and Bruno both time and money. You're not at all certain that what you saw was a hair. Plus, everything else about the meat department met with safety standards to a tee.
However, if what you saw really was a hair, it may indicate unsanitary practices at Bruno's. You could take the T-bone to the lab technicians at the inspection agency for a more detailed inspection.
What do you do?