Chicken meat is widely consumed and it is the most common and popular poultry species in the world.The preference and consumption of chicken meat have been tremendously increasing in Malaysia. About 120 respondents who took part in the study were classified into four groups namely routine chicken eaters, chicken likers, chicken lovers with a health concern and real chicken lovers based on their preference and consumption of chicken meat. It is worthwhile to mention that the taste, price, and easy to cook were statistically significant between the four groups. In addition, race moderates the relationship with Malays dominating the chicken lovers’ category. It is interesting to observe that Malays prefer chicken meat with chilies, Chinese prefer chicken meat with sauce and Indians prefer chicken meat with salad.The findings of the study are useful to the broiler plants and agencies that are responsible in selling chicken meat. Further, the results may be used as a guide to the selection of chicken meat, and also to the restaurant owners in the selection of food to be offered to their consumers.
Serving raw oysters with lemon juice is a delicacy in many restaurants in
Malaysia. Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) live in the seacoast and they share the same
environment as Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Consumption of raw oysters contaminated with V.
parahaemolyticus can lead to severe gastroenteritis. A study was performed to determine
whether lemon (Citrus limon) juice is able to inhibit the growth of V. parahaemolyticus after
being inoculated in raw oysters. Methods: Frozen oysters bought from a local supplier
weighing 6 g each were minced and placed in two bottles using sterile technique.
Approximately 1 ml of 107 CFU of V. parahaemolyticus (ATCC strain 17802) was added and
mixed in both bottles. The mixture was treated with 1 ml of lemon juice in only one of the
bottles and the other bottle served as a control. At every 30 s intervals for 2 min, 1 g of the
sample was taken for enumeration of viable cells onto thiosulphate citrate bile salt sucrose
(TCBS). Results: After 30 s of treatment with the lemon juice, it was observed that the
number of colonies in the treated samples reduced from 7 Log to 3 Log. Subsequently, no
viable V. parahaemolyticus was seen. It was also observed that there were 3 Log reductions
of V. parahaemolyticus after 30 s in untreated samples, however the number of colonies
remained stable until the end of the experiment. Conclusion: This study therefore shows
that lemon juice has some antimicrobial effect on V. parahaemolyticus in raw oysters.
Serving raw oysters with lemon juice is a delicacy in many restaurants in
Malaysia. Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) live in the seacoast and they share the same
environment as Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Consumption of raw oysters contaminated with V.
parahaemolyticus can lead to severe gastroenteritis. A study was performed to determine
whether lemon (Citrus limon) juice is able to inhibit the growth of V. parahaemolyticus after
being inoculated in raw oysters. Methods: Frozen oysters bought from a local supplier
weighing 6 g each were minced and placed in two bottles using sterile technique.
Approximately 1 ml of 107 CFU of V. parahaemolyticus (ATCC strain 17802) was added and
mixed in both bottles. The mixture was treated with 1 ml of lemon juice in only one of the
bottles and the other bottle served as a control. At every 30 s intervals for 2 min, 1 g of the
sample was taken for enumeration of viable cells onto thiosulphate citrate bile salt sucrose
(TCBS). Results: After 30 s of treatment with the lemon juice, it was observed that the
number of colonies in the treated samples reduced from 7 Log to 3 Log. Subsequently, no
viable V. parahaemolyticus was seen. It was also observed that there were 3 Log reductions
of V. parahaemolyticus after 30 s in untreated samples, however the number of colonies
remained stable until the end of the experiment. Conclusion: This study therefore shows
that lemon juice has some antimicrobial effect on V. parahaemolyticus in raw oysters.
This study investigates the impact of the aggregate and individual dimensions of environmental performance (EP) on financial performance (FP), based on a dataset covering the travel and tourism industry (airlines, casinos, hotels, and restaurants) across different economic regions over the period 2003-2014. The results reveal that EP positively affects the FP in the hotel industry when aggregate EP is used. When individual dimensions of EP are considered, resource reduction is found to positively (negatively) affect the performance in the hotel (airline) industry, while product innovation positively affects the performance in the restaurant industry. Hence, the trade-off effect seems to be dominant in the airline industry, and the 'heterogeneous resources and reputation-building' hypothesis is evident in both the hotel and restaurant industries. In addition, in general, the findings support the positive moderating effect of slack resources on the relationship between the individual dimensions of EP and FP in the travel and tourism industry, and, hence, are supportive of the slack resources hypothesis. These effects, however, vary depending on the travel and tourism industry under investigation.
In competitive markets, agribusiness firms have embarked on improving their service quality for building and maintaining a profitable relationship with their customers. However, such impact of service quality on business commitment has not been empirically investigated. To fill this gap, this study explores the relationship between service quality and commitment, using a case of supplier selection of fresh produce by hotel, restaurant, and catering (HORECA) sector in Malaysia. Using SERVQUAL as the main component of the conceptual framework, the relevant information was collected from 195 random HORECA operators and analyzed using partial least squares. The results indicate that service quality explains little of HORECA’s decision to stay with their current suppliers. While most service quality factors were insignificant, “responsiveness” in term of providing delivery service had a statistically significant positive impact on HORECA’s contractual arrangement with their current suppliers. These findings imply that quality service is being seen as a supplement; economic factors (e.g., prices and their stability, credit term) are likely to be the key drivers affecting buyer-seller relationships. If suppliers want to stay on course, they have to improve their service quality and focus more on delivery service. In addition, more research is needed in this relatively new area.
This study examined support for and reported compliance with smoke-free policy in air-conditioned restaurants and other similar places among adult smokers in Malaysia and Thailand. Baseline data (early 2005) from the International Tobacco Control Southeast Asia Survey (ITC-SEA), conducted face-to-face in Malaysia and Thailand (n = 4005), were used. Among those attending venues, reported total smoking bans in indoor air-conditioned places such as restaurants, coffee shops, and karaoke lounges were 40% and 57% in Malaysia and Thailand, respectively. Support for a total ban in air-conditioned venues was high and similar for both countries (82% Malaysian and 90% Thai smokers who believed there was a total ban), but self-reported compliance with bans in such venues was significantly higher in Thailand than in Malaysia (95% vs 51%, P < .001). As expected, reporting a ban in air-conditioned venues was associated with a greater support for a ban in such venues in both countries.
Cost and management accounting courses are incorporated in the accounting syllabus for both accounting and non-accounting students. One of the challenges in teaching cost and management accounting to the nonaccounting students is the general fear of accounting subject. Notwithstanding, most of the students still viewed accounting as an interesting subject. Hence, the learning problem faced by students needs to be addressed in a fun yet beneficial way. As such, the objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of using the “Smart Costing Game” as a learning method to overcome this problem. The Smart Costing Game Kit was developed as a learning tool to enable students to correctly classify costs according to certain criteria and subsequently used the cost figures to compute total costs, profit and selling price. Four business settings are chosen consisting of bakery, restaurant, laundry and clinic. At the end of the game activities, the students are required to complete an online survey. Results from the survey demonstrated that the majority of the students agreed that the games were found to be more effective, motivating and engaging than traditional teaching. This implies that students have strong
preferences in the use of educational games that added value to the costing subject. These results support the inclusion of Smart Costing Game as a successful learning strategy in cost and management accounting courses for the non-accounting students.
Since 20th century, the Korean wave has been a phenomenon globally and it has also spread through Malaysia in terms of culture, music, fashion and also food. Study shows that Malaysian is attracted towards Korean cuisine which increases the demand of Korean cuisine. As result, numerous of new business opportunities have raised. Sopoong, IOI City Mall, Putrajaya is one of the top and thriving Korean cuisine restaurant with more than five branches all over Kuala Lumpur and Klang Valley area. The aims of this study are to help the food establishment to improve their service quality and subsequently increase the customer satisfaction, and also could help any other organizations that are interrelated to this research. This research is also purposely to determine the relationship of service quality with customer satisfaction focused at Sopoong, IOI City Mall, Putrajaya. The researchers used the service quality dimension (SERVQUAL) such as tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy to find the relationship with customer satisfaction as the main idea. This study is a quantitative study conducted to tracks the seasonal trends or phenomena related to the issue. For this research, survey questionnaire was used as data collection method and three hundred and one (301) questionnaires were distributed to respondent at Sopoong, IOI City Mall, Putrajaya. The data collected are analysed by using descriptive and correlation analysis by using IBM-SPSS software. The findings of this study show that the relationship between service quality and customer satisfaction is available.
Exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) is a major threat to public health. Asian countries having the highest smoking prevalence are seriously affected by SHS. The objective of the study was to measure SHS levels in hospitality venues in seven Asian countries and to compare the SHS exposure to the levels in Western countries. The study was carried out in four types of related hospitality venues (restaurant, café, bar/club and entertainment) in China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Real-time measurement of particulate matter of <2.5microm aerodynamic diameter (PM(2.5)) was made during business hour using a handheld laser operated monitor. A total of 168 venues were measured in seven countries. The average indoor PM(2.5) level was 137microg/m(3), ranging from 46microg/m(3) in Malaysia to 207microg/m(3) in India. Bar/club had the highest PM(2.5) level of 191microg/m(3) and restaurants had the lowest PM(2.5) level of 92microg/m(3). The average indoor PM(2.5) level in smoking venues was 156micro/m(3), which was 3.6 times higher than non-smoking venues (43microg/m(3)). Indoor PM(2.5) levels were significantly associated with country, type of venue, smoking density and air exchange rate (p<0.05). In the seven Asian countries, PM(2.5) levels were high due to SHS in public places. The current levels are comparable to the levels in Western countries before the adoption of smoke-free policy. Since Asian country has high prevalence of SHS in public places, there is an urgent need for comprehensive smoke-free regulation in Asian countries.
Matched MeSH terms: Restaurants/statistics & numerical data
Malaysia is a tropical country that is highly dependent on surface water for its raw water supply. Unfortunately, surface water is vulnerable to pollution, especially in developed and dense urban catchments. Therefore, in this study, a methodology was developed for an extensive temporal water quality index (WQI) and classification analysis, simulations of various pollutant discharge scenarios using QUAL2K software, and maps with NH3-N as the core pollutant using an integrated QUAL2K-GIS. It was found that most of the water quality stations are categorized as Class III (slightly polluted to polluted). These stations are surrounded by residential areas, industries, workshops, restaurants and wet markets that contribute to the poor water quality levels. Additionally, low WQI values were reported in 2010 owing to development and agricultural activities. However, the WQI values improved during the wet season. High concentrations of NH3-N were found in the basin, especially during dry weather conditions. Three scenarios were simulated, i.e. 10%, 50% and 70% of pollution discharge into Skudai river using a calibrated and validated QUAL2K model. Model performance was evaluated using the relative percentage difference. An inclusive graph showing the current conditions and pollution reduction scenarios with respect to the distance of Skudai river and its tributaries is developed to determine the WQI classification. Comprehensive water quality maps based on NH3-N as the core pollutant are developed using integrated QUAL2K-GIS to illustrate the overall condition of the Skudai river. High NH3-N in the Skudai River affects water treatment plant operations. Pollution control of more than 90% is required to improve the water quality classification to Class II. The methodology and analysis developed in this study can assist various stakeholders and authorities in identifying problematic areas and determining the required percentage of pollution reduction to improve the Skudai River water quality.
Despite the many benefits of family meals, data on association between family meals away from home (FMAFH) and nutritional status of adolescents is limited. This study determined the association between FMAFH with dietary intake and body mass index of adolescents (N = 408).
This study adopts the pyrosequencing technique to identify bacteria present on 26 kitchen cutting boards collected from different grades of food premises around Seri Kembangan, a city in Malaysia. Pyrosequencing generated 452,401 of total reads of OTUs with an average of 1.4×10(7) bacterial cells/cm(2). Proteobacteria, Firmicutes and Bacteroides were identified as the most abundant phyla in the samples. Taxonomic richness was generally high with >1000 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) observed across all samples. The highest appearance frequencies (100%) were OTUs closely related to Enterobacter sp., Enterobacter aerogenes, Pseudomonas sp. and Pseudomonas putida. Several OTUs were identified most closely related to known food-borne pathogens, including Bacillus cereus, Cronobacter sakazaki, Cronobacter turisensis, Escherichia coli, E. coli O157:H7, Hafnia alvei, Kurthia gibsonii, Salmonella bongori, Salmonella enterica, Salmonella paratyphi, Salmonella tyhpi, Salmonella typhimurium and Yersinia enterocolitica ranging from 0.005% to 0.68% relative abundance. The condition and grade of the food premises on a three point cleanliness scale did not correlate with the bacterial abundance and type. Regardless of the status and grades, all food premises have the same likelihood to introduce food-borne bacteria from cutting boards to their foods and must always prioritize the correct food handling procedure in order to avoid unwanted outbreak of food-borne illnesses.
Employees are an asset to an organisation where they could be the determinant behind organisational’s success or failure in an industry. In this study, the relationship between perceived organisational support (POS), perceived supervisor support (PSS), and organisational commitment (OC) with employee’s intention to stay with their current jobs were studied. For that purpose, 717 questionnaires were collected among casual dining restaurants employees in Klang Valley area and analyses Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression were run by using SPSS version 21. The results suggest that POS, PSS, and OC were positively correlated with employee’s intention to stay with their current job. Furthermore, OC was also found to be the most influential factor in affecting employees’ staying intention. The finding is hoped to have important implications where the management can formulate strategies to retain employees in restaurant industry in Malaysia.
Influx of foreign students in Malaysia calls for a study on safety of food in Malaysia restaurants as perceived by them. This study aims to investigate perception of foreign students regarding food safety and personal hygiene practice of food handlers in Malaysia restaurants. A six sections Likert scale questionnaire was used. A total of 350 questionnaires were distributed during this study between March 2011 and March 2012 to the international students from 26 countries of the world in various public and private institutions of higher learning in Klang Valley, Malaysia. Among the distributed questionnaires, only 155 were correctly filled, retrieved and analyzed. Ninety-one respondents (59%) were male while 63 (41%) were females. A total of 107 (69%) were undergraduates and 29 (19%) were postgraduate students. One hundred and thirty-nine (90%) respondents were local or foreign restaurants. Eleven respondents (7%) did not patronize any of the restaurants. Among factors influencing choice of restaurants are closeness to residence, price of food and quality of food were the most important factors 62 (38%). Twenty-seven (28%) eat in restaurants because of the similarity of the food to that of their home country. Of the most preferred food, Nasi ayam, 89 (57%) top the list, next was Nasi goreng ayam, 14 (14%) and African food, 23 (15%). Nasi lemak was the least food preferred 3 (2%). A total of 104 (67%) respondents were of the opinion that handlers kept short nails, 91 (59%) do not pick nose, 108 (55%) stated that food handlers cough or sneeze while handling food. Ninety-eight respondents (64%) also stated that serving of food with unprotected hands were observed. The result of this study showed that although food handlers are aware of the need for personal hygiene, more awareness needs to be created.
Listeria spp. and Salmonella spp. are capable of causing food-borne outbreaks and diseases in humans. This study aimed to quantify and detect the occurrence of Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella Typhimurium in fruit juices by utilizing Most Probable Number (MPN) in combination with Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). In this study, a total of 50 fruit juice samples, consisting of orange, papaya, watermelon, honeydew and apple were collected from Kota Samarahan and Kuching. Specific Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) assay targeting the virulence gene, hlyA gene in L. monocytogenes and fliC gene in S. Typhimurium was performed, with the expected size of 730 bp and 559 bp, respectively. MPN analysis showed that the estimated microbial loads of Listeria spp. and Salmonella spp. in all samples were more than 1100 MPN/g. However, based on the PCR analysis, none of the samples (0%) were positive for L. monocytogenes or S. Typhimurium. This study presented as a preliminary food safety screening for the occurrence of Listeria spp. and Salmonella spp. from retailed fruit juices. Hygienic practices and food safety measures should be adhered by all food vendors and restaurants in order to avoid foodborne disease outbreaks in the future.
Trajectory clustering and path modelling are two core tasks in intelligent transport systems with a wide range of applications, from modeling drivers' behavior to traffic monitoring of road intersections. Traditional trajectory analysis considers them as separate tasks, where the system first clusters the trajectories into a known number of clusters and then the path taken in each cluster is modelled. However, such a hierarchy does not allow the knowledge of the path model to be used to improve the performance of trajectory clustering. Based on the distance dependent Chinese restaurant process (DDCRP), a trajectory analysis system that simultaneously performs trajectory clustering and path modelling was proposed. Unlike most traditional approaches where the number of clusters should be known, the proposed method decides the number of clusters automatically. The proposed algorithm was tested on two publicly available trajectory datasets, and the experimental results recorded better performance and considerable improvement in both datasets for the task of trajectory clustering compared to traditional approaches. The study proved that the proposed method is an appropriate candidate to be used for trajectory clustering and path modelling.
A 19-year-old Chinese man presented with progressive ascending weakness of his left lower limb for 1 week. There was no loss of sensation. His other limbs were unaffected. He also complained of progressive, painless blurring of vision in his left eye for the past 1 month. He has an affinity for wild boar meat from local Chinese restaurants, which he has been consuming on a daily basis for the last 2 years. He denied any fever, headache, high risk behaviour for acquisition of human
immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection or recent travels. He had bronchial asthma in childhood, but the symptoms are minimal now and there was no recent acute exacerbations. Physical examination was unremarkable except for the left lower limb power of 3/5 and bilateral papilloedema on direct ophthalmoscopy. A Contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) scan of the brain (Image 1) and Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain (Images 2 and 3) were performed. The
total leucocyte count was 9.2x109/L, C-reactive protein was 1.2 and erythrocyte sedimentation
rate was 6 mm/h. Human immunodeficiency virus screening was negative, anti-toxoplasma antibodies were not detected and serological testing for anti-cysticercal antibodies via enzymelinked
immunosorbent assay (ELISA) did not produce a positive yield. He was treated with oral albendazole for 28 days and corticosteroids, which led to rapid and total resolution of his neurological deficits and CT findings within 6 weeks.
Food borne diseases increase worldwide and contamination of food contact surfaces serves as one of the reasons for their occurrence. The aim of this study was to determine the microbiological quality of spoons at selected restaurants in Klang Valley, Malaysia. Five restaurants were selected therein for the study. They were respectively labelled A, B, C, D and E. A total of 150 cleaned spoons (30 spoons from each restaurants) that were ready to be used by customers at the restaurants were examined. Total plate counts (CFU/cm2) of the spoons were determined; the presumptive and confirmatory tests for the presence of Escherichia coli on the spoons were also conducted. The samples were collected by surface swabbing. The result showed that restaurant C and B had the highest and lowest total plate counts (TPC), respectively. Samples from 3 of the 5 selected restaurants (restaurants C, D and E) showed positive results for the presence of E. coli mainly due to poor dishware cleansing. On the contrary, negative results for the presence of E. coli at restaurant A and B were associated with the advance cleaning procedure, which used more hygienic method with dishwashers.
Food contamination is a crucial health problem as it could result in food-borne illness. This research aimed to evaluate the microbiological quality of ready-to-eat (RTE) fried rice dishes sold at different type of food premises in Kuantan city, Pahang. Total Plate Count (TPC), Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus and Aeromonas spp. bacteria were used as microbiological contamination indicators. About 52 samples were collected stratified randomly from four types of food premises (restaurant, cafeteria, food stall and night market) where about 13 samples were respectively collected from each type of the food premises. The results showed that TPC had medium mean count (6.30x105±1.47x105 cfu/g), S. aureus and B. cereus had high mean counts (7.70x104±2.22x105 cfu/g and 3.85x105±1.67x106 cfu/g respectively), while Aeromonas spp. had medium mean count (7.13x104±2.42x105 cfu/g). The mean counts of TPC in the samples collected from cafeteria were highest compare to other food premises.
The number of restaurants is increasing day by day in almost all the developing countries, causing the increase in the generation of restaurant wastewater. Various activities (i.e., cleaning, washing, and cooking) going on in the restaurant kitchen lead to restaurant wastewater (RWW). RWW has high concentrations of chemical oxygen demand (COD), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), nutrients such as potassium, phosphorus, and nitrogen, and solids. RWW also contains fats, oil, and grease (FOG) in alarmingly high concentration, which after congealing can constrict the sewer lines, leading to blockages, backups, and sanitatry sewer overflows (SSOs). The paper provides an insight to the details of RWW containing FOG collected from a gravity grease interceptor at a specific site in Malaysia, and its expected consequences and the sustainable management plan as prevention, control, and mitigation (PCM) approach. The results showed that the concentrations of pollutants are very high as compared to the discharge standards given by Department of Environment, Malaysia. Maximum values for COD, BOD and FOG in the restaurant wastewater samples were found to be 9948, 3170, and 1640 mg/l, respectively. FAME and FESEM analysis are done on the RWW containing FOG. In the FOG, palmitic acid (C16:0), stearic acid (C18:0), oleic acid (C18:1n9c), linoleic acid (C18:2n6c) are the dominant lipid acids with a maximum of 41, 8.4, 43.2, and 11.5%, respectively. FESEM analysis showed formation of whitish layers fprmed due to the deposition of calcium salts. Furthermore, a novel design of indoor hydromechanical grease interceptor (HGI) was proposed in the study based on the Malaysian conditions of restaurant. The HGI was designed for a maximum flow rate of 132 L per minute and a maximum FOG capacity of 60 kg.