Boulder
County, CO, – Beginning this week, Yelp
users in Boulder County will be able to see inspection scores for their
favorite Boulder County restaurants when looking at reviews on the site.
Through
a partnership between Boulder County Public Health, Yelp, and Decade Software Company, Boulder
County residents will be able to make informed choices about where they’d like
to eat based on how well the restaurant is doing to keep patrons free from the
risk of foodborne illness.
Yelp
visitors can see letter grades of each restaurant’s latest inspection score
consistent with the rating scale of excellent, good, fair, marginal, and
unacceptable, as well as specific cited violations and previous inspection
results.
“Many
Boulder County residents turn to Yelp to find out more about the vast number of
dining options in the county,” said Lane Drager, Boulder County Public Health
Consumer Protection Program coordinator. “This collaboration helps our
residents make informed choices about where they choose to dine.”
Boulder
County is home to approximately 1,652 food facilities, which includes
restaurants, mobile carts, retail markets, caterers, schools, temporary food
vendors, and institutions.
Although
restaurant inspection scores powered by Decade Software Company’s EnvisionConnect Software
Suite have been available on Boulder County
Public Health website for years, consumers will now be able to see Boulder
County inspection data alongside photos and reviews on Yelp.
“We
see this collaboration as a great opportunity to provide residents with easier
access to valuable health information that will prevent illness.” said Drager.
“In the U.S., foodborne illness is the number one reason for visits to the
emergency room.”
The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 48 million
people experience a foodborne illness every year, resulting in 128,000
hospitalizations and an estimated 3,000 preventable deaths. According to
the CDC, costs associated with all foodborne illnesses are estimated to be
between $8-23 billion per year.
“We’re thrilled to be working with Boulder
County and Decade Software to make this valuable information more accessible to
the people in Boulder County that turn to Yelp every month," said Jeremy
Stoppelman, CEO and co-founder of Yelp. "This was a joint effort as part
of Yelp's Local Inspector Value Entry Specification (LIVES) open data standard,
which enables local municipalities to accurately upload restaurant health
inspection scores for display on Yelp business pages."
For
more information about food safety and restaurant inspections visit www.BoulderCountyFood.org.
-BoulderCountyFood.org-
