Spectrum News: Boil Water Notice Provides Learning Opportunity for Culinary Students

October 25, 2018 

AUSTIN, Texas — Austin's boil water notice has posed significant challenges for people in the city, and as well as local restaurants.

For culinary students at Austin Community College, it's provided a unique learning opportunity.

"Having an actual problem that they have to deal with, that they're going to see in the industry, I love it when that happens because they get an opportunity to see the impact and learn that here in this setting as opposed to having to learn that in the actual industry. So I saw it as a great opportunity," Craig Sowell, an assistant professor at the ACC Culinary Department, said.

In class, ACC culinary students are learning how to adapt to the difficulties posed by the boil water notice, like pre-ordering bags of ice, using plastic utensils and plates, manually making tea and coffee with boiled water, sanitizing equipment with high-heat dishwashers, and hand-washing dishes with pre-boiled water.

Students are also adopting Austin Public Health's new procedures released Thursday, mandating that all food establishments use disposable gloves when handling ready-to-eat food.