OKC Health Inspectors Keeping Close Eye On Fair Fare

Thousands of residents are flocking to the fair for rides, games and of course the good food, from burgers to funnel cakes to anything on a stick, but how safe are they?

Do you ever think twice about food safety before devouring the delicious fair food? No? Well lucky for you, there are some watchful eyes keeping us all safe while we chow down.

There's no doubt the food is a huge draw for the state fair. And here you can find the weirdest, wackiest creations alongside the traditional snacks. But behind the scenes, Health Inspector Sasan Pilehvar and 20 others patrol booth to booth making sure the food you eat is safe.

A surprise inspection at Beckett's Mobil Bakery shows how much these vendors actually care about food safety. Pilehvar gives them the thumbs up without interrupting their business of dipping, rolling and frying up the fair favorites.

"The owners most of the time, they know the rules and they do respect the rules," said Pilevar.

The good news for fair-goers is that there have been no major issues with food vendors this year, but that doesn't mean Pilehvar and his team can relax.

"If we see them mishandle the food. We intervene. We see them outside smoking, going in, not washing hands, we usually give them a warning once," said Pilehvar.

And before you order, take a quick peek around.

"Even if you're at the counter, if you look in and you see them touching their hair, touching their face, scratching their hair and not washing their hands, people can call us. We do investigate any allegation of improper handling of the food," said Pilehvar.

Pilehvar attributes a lot of that success to his team and the Oklahoma City-County Health Department training the 1,500 food workers at the fair.

Don't forget, the News 9 Team will be at the State fair all week. Stop by our booth near Gate One. You can sign up for your chance to win a mattress set from Bob Mills. We're also collecting donations for the regional food bank's food for kids program.