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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Increase the proportion of people who own a food thermometer — FS‑09 Data Methodology and Measurement

On this page:  About this objective  |  Methodology  |  History

About this objective

Data

Data Source:  Food Safety and Nutrition Survey (FSANS), FDA

National baseline: 62.2 percent of adults aged 18 and older owned a food thermometer in 2019

National target: 65.1 percent

Numerator
The number of survey respondents who own a food thermometer.
Denominator
The number of survey respondents who prepare food.
National target-setting method
Minimal statistical significance
National target-setting method details
Minimal statistical significance, assuming the same standard error for the target as for the baseline.
National target-setting method justification
Trend data were not available for this objective. The standard error was used to calculate a target based on minimal statistical signficance, assuming the same standard error for the target as for the baseline. This method was used because it was a statistically significant improvement from the baseline. The Healthy People 2030 Workgroup Subject Matter Experts viewed this as an achievable target.
National data collection frequency
Periodic

Methodology

Questions used to obtain the national baseline data

(For additional information, please visit the data source page linked above.)

From the 2019 Food Safety and Nutrition Survey:

Numerator:
Do you have a food thermometer, such as a meat thermometer?
  1. Yes
  2. No
  3. Don't know

History

Comparable HP2020 objective
Modified, which includes core objectives that are continuing from Healthy People 2020 but underwent a change in measurement.
Changes between HP2020 and HP2030
This objective differs from the related Healthy People 2020 objective in that FS-5.3 used data from the Food Safety Survey (FSS) to measure consumers who correctly followed the recommendation to use a food thermometer when cooking meat and poultry, while this objective uses data from the Food Safety and Nutrition Survey (FSANS) to track adults who own a food thermometer. In 2019, the FDA updated and renamed the FSS to FSANS.
Revision History
Revised. 

In 2026, the data source was updated from FSS to FSANS. The measure was revised from consumers who correctly followed the recommendation to use a food thermometer when cooking meat and poultry to track adults who own a food thermometer. The baseline was revised from 42.0% in 2016 to 62.2% in 2019. The target setting method was revised from percent improvement to minimal statistical significance, and the target was revised from 47.0% to 65.1%.