San Diego, CA November 15, 1996 - A food safety expert for Jack in the Box® restaurants has been awarded the California Environmental Health Association's (CEHA) Mark Nottingham Memorial Award for demonstrating recognizable and significant contributions to the field of environmental health. Dr. David M. Theno, vice president of research and development, quality assurance and product safety for Jack in the Box Inc., parent company of Jack in the Box, received the award yesterday at CEHA's annual educational conference April 17.

"Dr. Theno's strong support of food-safety initiatives and active participation in the legislative process to effect state and national laws are truly commendable," said Richard Ramirez, chief of the San Diego County Department of Environmental Health and member of the San Diego County Chapter of CEHA. "His leadership and expertise in the field of food safety have influenced California legislators to consider legislation requiring minimum cooking temperatures for meat and poultry to kill dangerous microorganisms, such as salmonella and E. coli.

Theno is also credited with launching the fast-food industry's first and most comprehensive Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) food-safety program at Jack in the Box restaurants. Patterned after NASA procedures to ensure safe food for astronauts, HACCP consists of "farm to fork" procedures that include microbial meat testing by Jack in the Box suppliers and in-restaurant grilling procedures to ensure fully cooked hamburgers.

Theno's implementation of HACCP at Jack in the Box restaurants has played a significant role in the recent success of the company. Lauded by the Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Center for Science in the Public Interest as a gold standard in the industry, HACCP is freely shared with others inside and outside the food industry.