Food safety knowledge and practices of food recovery agency workers before and after food safety training

Abstract

Many food recovery agencies depend on donated food, and its safety is critical for the health of vulnerable populations. A food safety curriculum was developed for agency volunteers and paid staff of the Lower Mississippi Delta region. Examples of topics in the curriculum included: personal hygiene, food storage, transporting food safely, and HACCP. Food Safety Knowledge Pre- and Posttests (20 questions) were identical, and validity and reliability were established prior to use. Paired t-tests were performed to determine the effectiveness of the curriculum (n=190). A Food Safety Practices Survey (10 questions) demonstrating attitudes and behaviors regarding food safety practices in the agency and/or the home was given with the Food Safety Knowledge Posttest. The heading on the survey was, “After the food safety training today I plan to,” and possible responses were “already doing,” “yes,” or “no.” A Food Safety Practices Delayed Survey was administered by mail to participants 3-6 months following the food safety training. The Food Safety Practices Delayed Survey was similar to the Food Safety Practices Survey except there were four possible answer choices-- “always,” “most of the time,” “sometimes,” and “never.” Food Safety Knowledge Posttest scores (19.0 ± 0.1) were significantly (p<0.000) greater than Food Safety Knowledge Pretest scores (16.6 ± 0.2). Food Safety Practices Survey results indicated that participants were already using proper food safety practices (5.8 ± 0.2), or that they plan to use proper food safety practices (4.0 ± 0.2). On the Food Safety Practices Delayed Survey (n=82) participants indicated that they “always” (8.8 ± 0.2) or “most of the time” (0.8 ± 0.1) follow proper food safety practices. Results demonstrated the food safety curriculum was used successfully to improve food safety knowledge. Food Safety Practices Survey results indicated that the majority of food recovery agency personnel and staff were already using proper food safety practices in their agency or at home. In addition, the results from the Food Safety Practices Delayed Survey showed the participants retained the knowledge from the food safety training and a majority were “always” following proper food safety practices.