A recent study has characterized the challenges of ensuring food safety in “dark kitchens,” sometimes referred to as "ghost kitchens," which are defined as foodservice establishments that offer meals for delivery or takeout via online platforms, and may or may not have a storefront but do not offer a space for on-site dining.

The number of dark kitchens has grown since the COVID-19 pandemic, necessitating research to fill knowledge gaps about the challenges that these establishments present to environmental health officers (EHOs) and how challenges can be addressed. To better understand this topic, researchers conducted an online survey, focus groups, and interviews with EHOs and dark kitchen operators in England. EHOs were asked how they identify dark kitchens and carry out inspections, while dark kitchen operators were questioned about their food safety practices and their experiences with inspections.

Challenges identified by dark kitchen operators included the difficulty in managing food safety in shared dark kitchens, the food handling practices of delivery drivers, high turnover of kitchen staff and understaffing, and the reliance on online platforms for communicating important information (e.g., allergen or ingredient information) with consumers, with platforms sometimes taking up to two days to show updates. To address these challenges, dark kitchen operators underlined two key strategies: formal food safety and hygiene training for staff and delivery drivers, and more frequent inspections by local authorities to encourage better adherence to food safety standards.

In the EHOs’ perspectives, dark kitchen “invisibility” was identified as a significant challenge, meaning that it is difficult to identify which businesses are dark kitchens due to their operation under several brand names, or because dark kitchens are not always aware of their obligation to register. A lack of EHO staff compounds this issue because there are not enough boots on the ground to proactively identify dark kitchens.

Additionally, sometimes dark kitchens operating as a virtual business base their operations out of a standard restaurant in which they are tenants, with uncertain or sporadic operating hours, making it hard for authorities to physically visit and inspect the business. Different dark kitchen businesses may also operate alongside each other at the same time in the same shared kitchen space, rendering inspection more difficult, especially in determining responsibilities and how staff from different food business operations ensure hygiene. Inspectors have also identified issues like structural problems that compromise food safety and inadequate cleaning practices creating cross-contamination hazards in these communal kitchens. Moreover, EHOs reported that an absence of clear guidance from their regulatory bodies hindered their ability to enforce food safety standards.

To address the myriad challenges faced in dark kitchen oversight, EHOs underlined the need for stronger guidance and regulations, such as registration forms that ensure dark kitchens include details of all trading names under which they operate, or mandatory licensing schemes and increased penalties for non-compliance with registration requirements. EHOs also expressed the need for comprehensive and specific guidelines for evaluating hygiene practices, allergen control, and structural standards relevant to shared kitchens. Finally, EHOs suggest local authority engagement and open communication with dark kitchens to promote better food safety, establishing partnerships with trading standard officers to ensure effective allergen control, and collaborating with building owners who rent out shared kitchen spaces and with online delivery platforms to gain information about dark kitchen businesses.

The study, published in Food Control and funded by a UK National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) grant, was conducted by researchers from the University of Central Lancashire, the University of Birmingham, and the State University of Campinas in Brazil.