Restaurant grading—where a restaurant is required to publicly post a “grade” based on the results of a food safety inspection—empowers consumers and can reduce foodborne illness rates. Beyond the public health impact, restaurant grading programs have strong public support, increase the visibility of the health department, and underscore the health department’s role in consumer protection, public health, and food safety.
The purpose of this brief from CityHealth and the National Environmental Health Association is to inform policymakers seeking to create or improve a restaurant grading system in their own locality using lessons learned from peers who have recently implemented a strong policy.
