Poultry and Egg Education Project (PEEP)
Development of Science-based and Consumer-focused Messages to Improve Consumers’ Storage, Handling, and Preparation of Poultry, Eggs, and Poultry Products
The long-term goal of this USDA-AFRI project is to reduce illnesses from Salmonella and Campylobacter by improving consumer storage, handling, and preparation of raw poultry and poultry products. The project team at Tennessee State University (PI - Dr. Sandria Godwin), Kansas State University, and RTI International achieves the goal through the integration of five objectives:
1. Characterize consumers' purchase, storage, handling, and preparation of poultry products and eggs and their awareness and understanding of existing food safety messages.
2. Assess and prioritize the risk of contamination or cross-contamination from purchase or in-home storage, handling, and preparation of poultry products and eggs.
3. Develop and test science-based and consumer-focused messages identified in Objectives 1 and 2 and educational programs on safe purchase, storage, handling, and preparation of poultry products and eggs.
4. Evaluate messages and educational programs to assess the impact on improving consumers' purchase, storage, handling, and preparation of poultry products and eggs.
5. Enhance student experiential learning opportunities through participation in food microbiology assessments and consumer studies.
Activities:
The project has been integrated into graduate courses for future educators in TSU's AGSC Program Evaluation course, as the project served as the context for evaluating student understanding of program planning, delivery, and evaluation.
The project is introduced to youth in the Nashville area via our Pencil Partnership with the Academies of Nashville, specifically agricultural education students and their contemporaries at Glencliff, Whites Creek, McGavock, and Overton High Schools.
Dr. Sandria Godwin (TSU) and Dr. Edgar Chambers (K-State) served as expert consultants/writers for the new Food Safety course for the Curriculum for Agricultural Science Education (CASE). Additionally, Dr. John Ricketts (TSU) is an Affiliate Professor for CASE, and TSU is an Affiliate Institution, giving the project team the opportunity to disseminate research findings about safe practices to educators and their students and in the homes from which all of these participants reside.
The project is shared with thousands of youth from across the state each year at the State FFA Convention in Gatlinburg, TN.
Curricula and various educational activities are being developed to share with youth about safe handling, storage, and use of poultry and poultry products. Check back here for more details.
Several studies with youth are underway to assess their safe handling, storage, and use of poultry and poultry products. Check back here for more details.
Presentations:
Ricketts, J. C., Godwin, S., Chambers, E., & Cates, S. (2013). Integrating outputs of the Poultry and Egg Education Project (PEEP) into a program development and evaluation course. Paper presented at the 59th Annual NACTA Conference, Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, VA
Publications:
Ricketts, J. C., et al. (2013). Integrating outputs of the Poultry and Egg Education Project (PEEP) into a program development and evaluation course. NACTA Journal, 57 (1).
Curriculum:
Click here for curriculum and supporting activities and videos to integrate food safety competencies related to poultry and poultry products into your youth programs.
This site is maintained by Co-PI, Dr. John C. Ricketts, in order to report and evaluate activities, especially those related to youth consumers.