Ethical Issues in Food Purchasing - Student Discussions

By: Catherine Strohbehn



I teach "Food Purchasing," HRI 4334, a required course for Iowa State students enrolled in the Department of Hotel, Restaurant, and Institution Management curricula. Course content focuses no only on the characteristics of food commodities, but also on purchasing procedures, both subjects that involve ethical questions. Students who may in their professional lives become buyers for hospitality operations will have to make decisions about which products to purchase and how they will conduct themselves in business transactions. While codes of ethics from professional associations offer some guidance, and a business' policy and procedure manual can server as an explicit resource for ethical conduct, students nonetheless need occasions during class to reflect on these moral matters for themselves.

In a one-hour class period devoted to ethical issues in purchasing, an overview of issues to be addressed in an organizational policy and procedure manual is presented. Potentially problematic situations are discussed, such as gifts from supppliers, supplier favoritism, buyer limits on price and amount of purchases, personal purchases, and free samples. Ethical codes of the National Association of Purchasing Managers and the National Restaurant Association of Foodservice Purchasing Mangers are shared.

I ask students to form small groups in which they respond to described situations. The purpose of this exercise is to have students apply ethical guidelines to specific dilemmas so as to express and refine their own ethical perspectives. Students break into groups of two or three. I try to have various genders and nationalities represented within each group because research has shown that gender and cultural differences may impact value systems.

I then project an overhead entitled "Seven Tests for Ethics" (IIQUEST, 1995), shown in Figure 1, to provide a reference point. Dilemmas and responses from buyers or hospitality managers in one of two national studies (Reid & Reigel, 19898; Schmidgall, 1991) are presented in Table 1. The dilemmas are read to the students. Student groups discuss these situations and rate the ethical nature of the action using a five-point Likert-type scale (1=very unethical, 5=ethical). After student groups have reached a consensus, results of the studies are shared and a rationale provided. Often, further opinions from students are voiced.

This exercise has been an effective learning tool for students applying "textbook knowledge" to particular situations. The group discussions allow students to integrate their own experiences wih information they are learning in class. The dialogs that take place within and between student groups are especially beneficial.

 

Figure 1: Seven Tests for Ethics

1. Is it legal?

2. Does it hurt anyone?

3. Is it fair?

4. Am I being honest?

5. Can I live with myself?

6. Would I publicize my decision?

7. What if everyone did it?

 



References

International Institute for Quality and Ethics in Service and Tourism, Ltd. (IIQEST). (1995). Seven tests for ethics. The Voice of Excellence, 6(1).

Reid, R. & Reigel, C. (1989). [cited in Stefanelli, J.M. (1992)]. Purchasing, Selection, and Procurement for Hospitality Industry. New York: Wiley.

Schmidgall, R. (1991). Hotel scruples. Lodging, 17(1), 39-40.