an endemic food- and water-borne disease and
cases occur periodically; in addition, typhoid
and hepatitis A are endemic in the state and
give rise to clusters of disease and periodic
outbreaks (Ministry of Health, 1998a). In the
United States, between 24 and 81 million people
become ill each year from the consumption of
contaminated foods and many cases of foodrelated
illness are caused by the mishandling
of food, especially in retail establishments
(Climent, 1999).