Seventy percent of food vendors at Ford Field have been issued critical health violations according to an ESPN report on food safety at stadiums and arenas nationwide.

An excerpt from the report on Ford Field said: "Inspectors cited one location 11 times in the past six years after seeing employees who didn't wash their hands. At another stand, they found an employee's half-eaten hamburger in a warming unit."

Ford Field and Levy Restaurants, which operates the food service at the stadium, issued a joint statement on Monday:

“Ford Field has always been committed to the highest food service standards in the industry. In conjunction with Levy Restaurants, our food service partner, we will continue to make food safety, food quality and service to our customers our top priorities.

“Over the past year we served more than 1 million fans at Ford Field. Our commitment to those fans is to provide memorable and safe dining experiences each time they visit Ford Field.

The reply continued that Ford Field, through Levy Restaurants, uses a third-party external vendor to audit food safety and sanitation operations regularly.

“These unscheduled reviews are considered an industry best practice. We also take immediate action to address and correct any suggestions for improvement the Health Department provides. The safety of our guests and our team members is our top priority and we follow a strict food safety and sanitation program."

In the report Joe Louis Arena, Comerica Park and The Palace of Auburn Hills were also shown to have violations, but less than at Ford Field.