Great. At Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia where I take my children to see the Phillies, 29 percent of the food vendors at the ballpark have been found to be in violation of health codes and some have even received critical violations.

 

I found out this information from ESPN’s special report, What’s Lurking in Your Stadium Food. ESPN reviewed health department inspection reports from the 107 stadiums that MLB, NBA, NHL and NFL teams use and created an interactive map so that sports lovers can find out how the ballparks faired.

 

Only 11 (three of them in Chicago) of the 107 stadiums received no violations. Eight stadiums (seven of them in Florida) had over 75 percent of their concession stands with violations. The rest of the stadiums fell somewhere in between.

 

The report makes clear that each state has its own health inspection rules. The three stadiums that were inspected in Chicago were inspected “when the stadiums were not hosting games, with no food being served or prepared, and no workers present.” The stadiums in Florida were inspected by a state agency and “officials say that makes their standards more uniform and stringent.”

 

Feeding tens of thousands of hungry sports fans impatiently waiting to get back to their seats often leads to unsafe food safety practices. Food can end up not cooked thoroughly, workers use their bare hands to get things done more quickly, and uncooked and cooked food end up being placed on the same cutting board without it being properly washed first.

 

So what can you do when you’re at the stadium to lessen your chances of eating tainted food from an unsafe vendor? Here are a few suggestions.

 

Any other suggestions for ensuring safe ballpark food?