Libyan Women's Knowledge and Practices of Fish Safety

Abstract

Fish and fish products are important sources of essential nutrients for the body, and nutritionists recommend eating seafood twice a week. Therefore, to achieve the benefits of fish and fish products, the safety of fish should be considered from catching to the consumer table. The study evaluated fish safety knowledge and practices in a random sample of 344 women in Tripoli City, Libya. The survey was carried out by the self-administered questionnaire prepared for this purpose. The questionnaire consisted of four parts; the first part: questions about fish safety knowledge; the second part: questions about fish safety practices during purchasing; the third part: questions about fish safety practices at home; the fourth part: personal information. The mean knowledge score was 10.97±2.49 out of a total score of 15, the mean score of practices during purchasing was 23.2±4.10 out of a total score of 32, and the mean score of practices at home was 55.8± 6.32 out of a total score of 88. Age, marital status, employment and educational level had no significant effect on knowledge and practices (P>0.05). The study concluded that effective programs should be adopted to educate women to raise their awareness level of fish safety.