Level Of Food Safety Knowledge Research Articles

Analytical Evaluation of Food Safety Knowledge and Practices of Street Food Vending in the Philippines

This study explores the disparity between the food safety knowledge and practices of street food vendors in a developing country. A purposive survey to determine the knowledge and practices of street food vendors was conducted on 36 street food vendors. The food safety knowledge of the street vendors was tested under five factors, as adopted in the literature. Through a chi-square goodness-of-fit test, a disparity between the food safety knowledge and practices of street food vendors was observed. Moreover, a structural modeling technique was adopted to analyze the interrelationships between food safety knowledge factors and practices. As a result, it was found that most of the food safety knowledge impact their counterpart factors on food safety practices. Likewise, such factors on food safety knowledge are crucial in explaining the reported food safety practices. When mapping the food safety knowledge.of the street food vendors to their practices, it was found that street vendors have a high level of food safety knowledge but low in actual practice, as evidenced by poor food handling practices among street food vendors which also significantly differs from the established standards. The results in this study provide crucial insights into the literature in developing a holistic view of the dynamics of street food vending. Moreover, the results may be beneficial to stakeholders as it may aid them in the development of management and policy initiatives that may be crucial in addressing the contemporary issues of street food vending in developing countries.

Mutfak Şeflerinin Beslenme ve Gıda Güvenliği Bilgi Düzeyinin Belirlenmesi

Mass food production in food and beverage enterprises is an important process involving many risks. For this reason, it is important that the personnel working in food production are competent in nutrition and food safety. This research aims to determine the nutritional and food safety knowledge level of kitchen chefs. The universe of the research consists of chefs working in fourstar and five-star hotels and first-class restaurants in Sakarya and Kocaeli provinces. The sample size was determined to be 265 and 280 kitchen chefs were reached. Survey was used as data collection tool. Survey consists of demographic questions and nutritional and food safety knowledge level scales. Participants obtained certain scores according to their responses to the statements. Nutritional and food safety knowledge level of the participants; It has been classified into four groups as low, medium, good and very good. As a result of the research, it was determined that the nutrition and food safety knowledge level of the kitchen chefs was found to be at a good level and it was suggested that the most important factor in the increase of the nutrition and food safety knowledge level was education.

Knowledge and awareness of food safety among middle school students in Tripoli, Libya

Introduction: To protect public health in society, it is imperative to promote good food safety practices by raising awareness and knowledge, especially among school students. This study aimed to assess the food safety knowledge and practices among middle school students in Tripoli, Libya.
 Methods: The study was conducted through a questionnaire to find out the level of food safety knowledge and practices among randomly selected students from several municipalities in Tripoli city, Libya, from May to November 2019. Approval from the director of the Basic Education Administration was taken. Data were analyzed to determine the association of demographics and the level of knowledge and practices, the correlation between knowledge and practice scores. The data analysis was performed by SPSS. A Chi-square test was used to find out the association. A p<0.05 was considered statistically significant.
 Results: There was a total of 591 students surveyed. A good level of food safety knowledge was found in 325(55%) and the level of food safety practices was high in 558(94.4%). Only 102(17.3%) of the students always washed their hands before eating in school. There was a significant association (p<0.05) between gender and municipality with the knowledge scores.
 conclusion: The level of food safety practices was high but only half of the middle school students surveyed had a good level of knowledge.

Food Safety Knowledge, Handling Practices and Associated Factors Among Food Handlers Working in Food Establishments in Debre Markos Town, Northwest Ethiopia, 2020: Institution-Based Cross-Sectional Study.

PurposeFoodborne illness is a major public health problem worldwide. The supply of safe and healthy food is crucial to prevent foodborne illness. However, evidence regarding food safety knowledge and handling practice is limited in Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aimed to assess food safety knowledge, handling practice, and its associated factors among food handlers in Debre Markos Town, North West Ethiopia.Patients and MethodsAn institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 408 randomly selected food handlers at Debre-Markos town. A structured questionnaire and an observational checklist were used to collect relevant data. The main outcome of interest was food safety and handling practice. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to identify the factors significantly associated with food safety knowledge and food handling practice. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 25.ResultsIn this study, only 34.1% of food handlers had good food safety knowledge and nearly 54% of food handlers had good food handling practice. Level of education (AOR = 0.23 (0.14–0.57)), training on food safety (AOR = 5.13 (3.57–7.82)), and favorable attitudes towards food safety (AOR=2.54 (1.52–4.25)) were the factors associated with knowledge of food safety. Similarly, training (AOR=2.05, 95% CI=1.31–3.19), a good level of knowledge (AOR: 1.68, 95% CI: 1.40, 3.17), and work experience (AOR = 1.24, 95% CI: 1.10–2.81) were positively associated with good food handling practice.ConclusionIn this study, the level of food safety knowledge and handling practices were relatively low. Therefore, the concerned bodies should work on the identified factors to improve food handlers’ knowledge of food safety and practice level. Continuous training for food handlers should be given.

Food safety knowledge levels of gastronomy/culinary arts students and food workers in Southern Turkey

This research was aimed to analyze the food safety knowledge levels between gastronomy and culinary arts students and food work-ers in the Çukurova Region of Turkey. A total of 155 participants (80 students, 75 food workers) have partici-pated in this cross-sectional study. The overall knowledge scores of food workers and the students were 89.33% and 78.89% respectively, and food workers have more scores in all sections (p<0.001). Hy-giene certification, occupa-tion, and working estab-lishments had a significant association with total food safety scores; however, gender, marital status, age, education level, frequency of hygiene education, work-ing experience, monthly in-come had no significant as-sociation with their scores (p>0.05). A positive correla-tion was found between gender, education status, hygiene certification, and frequency of receiving hy-giene education; but no cor-relation was found between working in any food busi-ness, graduated high schools, and age of the stu-dents (p>0.05). More knowledge gaps of both groups have been found about time-temperature con-trol, holding/storage tem-perature, and cross-contamination. Finally, it is important to measure the reflection of the hygiene training on practices and to make it regular in ensuring food safety.

FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH FOOD SAFETY KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE AMONG STREET FOOD VENDORS IN TAUNGGYI TOWNSHIP, MYANMAR: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Food safety is a growing public health concern worldwide. Street foods are an integral part of many cultures and offer at affordable prices. However, it is associated with food safety issues, especially in developing countries. Therefore, it is essential that street food vendors understand and implement food safety practices to prevent outbreaks of food-borne illnesses. This cross-sectional study investigated the food safety knowledge and practices as well as their associated factors among street food vendors in Taunggyi Township, Myanmar. Validated structured questionnaires were used to interview 158 street food vendors, and a set of observational checklists was used to inspect the sanitary conditions of vending sites and vendors’ food hygiene practices. The association between food safety knowledge and practices was assessed using a chi-squared test. Our results revealed that most vendors had a high level of food safety knowledge and that 58.9% scored equal to or lower than the median value in food safety practices, whereas 41.1% scored higher than the median value (median=15). Sex and education level were significantly associated with participants’ food safety knowledge (p < 0.001). Similarly, education, race and monthly income were significantly associated with their food safety practices (p < 0.001), whereas food safety training attendance had no association. Additionally, participants with better knowledge scores were more likely to have better practice scores. Food safety training given to vendors should be more detailed and comply with standard guidelines, especially with regard to street food safety practices.

Hubungan Antara Tingkat Pendidikan dan Pendapatan Karyawan dengan Pengetahuan dan Sikap Keamanan Pangannya pada Tempat Makan di DKI Jakarta

Food safety is an important aspect of consumption behavior, especially for employees in the office. Lack of food safety knowledge and awareness can endanger the health and reduce the productivity of employee. This study aims to describe the level of food safety knowledge and attitudes of employees at food stalls as well as their preferences for lunch at office environment, determine the effectiveness of information media as a source of food safety information and also the role of the government in food safety education and food safety supervision at food stalls. This study used an online questionnaire with 405 respondents who work in the DKI Jakarta. The data collected were analyzed statistically using the SPSS program. The results showed that the characteristics of the employees, such as education level and nett income level, had an effect on the food safety knowledge level and food safety attitudes at the food stalls. Most of employees (87,7%) have a good level of food safety knowledge and 67,7% of employees also have a good level of food safety attitude at food stalls. The results of the Spearman correlation test showed that the level of food safety knowledge and attitude at food stalls was correlated with the level of education and nett income. Most of the employees (37,8%) choose the canteen as a place to eat in the office and some choose food stalls (16,0%) and restaurants (10,1%). Information media considered effective enough for spreading the information of food safety according to employees was social media.
 
 Keywords: attitudes, consumption behaviour, employees, food safety, knowledge

Structural equation modelling of food safety knowledge, attitude and practices among consumers in Malaysia

Factors contributing to foodborne illnesses in Malaysia were identified as insanitary food handling procedures and lack of hygiene in food preparation area. Food safety at home is a critical point as consumers represent the final step in food preparation and prevention of foodborne diseases. This study aims to investigate the food safety knowledge, attitude and self-reported practices among consumers in Malaysia. An online survey was conducted, and data were analysed using descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis. A model linking food safety knowledge and attitude and their direct effects on practices were confirmed using structural equation modelling (SEM). The proposed model fulfilled the goodness of fit indices and is deemed acceptable. Respondents demonstrate good level of food safety knowledge and positive attitudes and self-reported practices. Food safety knowledge has a negative and insignificant relationship with food safety practices (β1 = -0.284, p>0.05) while attitude significantly affects food safety practices (β1 = 0.534, p<0.05). The findings clearly indicate that food safety knowledge does not directly affect food safety practices This is also the first study to provide new empirical findings on thermometer usage among consumers in Malaysia. This study establishes an important point of reference where consumers use visual appearances to determine if food is thoroughly cooked and practice washing raw chicken prior to cooking. Food safety practices at home play a critical role in protecting consumers in reducing risks of foodborne illnesses.

Food safety knowledge among Jordanians: A national study

Foodborne diseases is a worldwide public health issue. This study aimed to identify food safety knowledge among consumers in Jordan throughout the different steps included in the food handling process; specifically, purchasing, storage, and cooking. This was a multistage national representative study where a large number (n = 2500) of consumers in Jordan were approached randomly between May and October of 2018. A total of 1612 consumers (64.5% response rate) volunteered to participate in the study by answering a self-administered questionnaire. Chi-square test was used to calculate the relationship between the claimed safe food purchasing knowledge and risky practices at a significance level of (α = 0.05). ANOVA and T-tests were used to investigate if score differences in food safety knowledge were affected by different socio-demographic parameters such as level of education, working status, occupation and monthly income. Over half of participants reported good level of food safety knowledge. Food safety knowledge scores were significantly affected by age (p < 0.001), marital status (p < 0.001), level of education (p < 0.001), monthly income (p < 0.001) site of residence (p < 0.001), working status and occupation (p < 0.001). Overall, consumers reported proper food safety knowledge. This report provides overall understanding regarding knowledge of Jordanians about food safety. Consumers of food are lacking adequate knowledge. Recommendations for food safety authorities in Jordan concerning consumers targeted food safety programs and constitutes a baseline against which future food safety interventions could be measured.

Asymmetry in food safety information – the case of the 2018 Listeriosis outbreak and low-income, urban consumers in Gauteng, South Africa

ABSTRACTThis study considered the efficiency with which food safety information is received and retained by low-income consumers in South Africa. Primary data from 110 low-income, urban, food consumers around Gauteng were collected and analysed with a willingness to pay (WTP) experiment and a proportional odds model. The study found that initially, 47% of the respondents claimed to know what Listeriosis is. Data validation, and a WTP experiment, however, suggest that there is social acceptability response bias. The proportional odds model further showed that education level is significant in explaining the level of food safety knowledge, but income is not. These results serve as an approximation of the degree of information asymmetry between low-income, urban food consumers and the South African government.

Cross-cultural differences in food safety knowledge, attitudes and practices of food handlers working at restaurants in Kuwait.

This study was conducted to assess the level of food safety knowledge, attitudes and practices among 273 Filipinos, Egyptians and Indians food handlers in Kuwait restaurants. The information was obtained through face to face interviews and questionnaires covering four sections: demographic characteristics, food safety knowledge, attitudes and practices. The results show that Filipinos, Egyptians and Indians food handlers had sufficient food safety knowledge particularly in the personal hygiene area. Filipinos were the best answering questions related to cross contamination and sanitation (p < 0.05). Egyptians and Indians lacked the knowledge about cross-contamination and sanitation, time and temperature control for food, and food pathogens. For attitudes, results show that Filipinos had excellent positive attitudes followed by Indians then Egyptians (p < 0.05). The three nationalities generally show very good practices mainly in personal hygiene. However, only 56 % of Egyptians and 57% of Indians avoided keeping cooked food in the temperature danger zone until served (p < 0.05). The study recommends that some aspects associated to cross-contamination, food pathogens and time and temperature control need to be stressed especially for Egyptians and Indians food handlers. Continuous food safety training for food handlers in Kuwait should become compulsory to reinforce food handlers in the areas which seem to be lacking. (www.actabiomedica.it)

Food safety knowledge and self-reported practices among school children in the Ga West Municipality in Ghana

BackgroundKnowledge in food safety influences food safety attitudes of people which could result in behavioural changes. Inadequate knowledge in food safety among consumers, especially children, increase their risk of getting foodborne diseases. Implementing food safety educational programs in schools is key in improving the food safety knowledge of the school children. This study is aimed at assessing the food safety knowledge and practice of students in the Ga West district of Ghana. MethodA cross-sectional study was conducted on food safety knowledge and practices of students in the basic schools in the Ga West District of the Greater Accra Region-Ghana. A total of 1500 questionnaires were self-administrated to students in the 104 schools. ResultOut of the 1343 respondents, 694 (51.7%) of them were female whiles 649 (48.3%) were male. The mean age of the students was 13years (Std Dev of ±1.9) with their ages ranging from 7 to 21 years. The food safety knowledge level of the students was inadequate with a mean score of 5.8 (std Dev ± 1.6) representing 64.08% of the maximum total food safety knowledge score. 59.6% (801) of the students had adequate level of food safety knowledge. The food safety practice among the respondents was generally appropriate with a mean score of 36.19 (std Dev ± 5.1) representing 80.4% of the maximum total food safety practice score. 90.2% (1211) of the students reported to be engaging in appropriate food safety practice. With the exception of the demographic characteristic ‘age’ and ‘class’ (p-value < 0.001), no statistical difference was observed in the level of food safety knowledge and practices among the various demographic characteristic of the student. There was a positive correlation between food safety knowledge and practices (coefficient of 0.2 and p-value < 0.001). Most of the students indicated that they first look out for the cleanliness of the surrounding of the vendor and then the vendors neatness before they buy or eat from a food vendor. ConclusionEven though the food safety knowledge level of the students was inadequate, the food safety practice was generally appropriate especially their hand washing practices.

Convergence Evaluating Food Safety Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice regarding Food handler

This study aimed to assess the level of food safety knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) among 500 Food handlers of hospitals in Korea and to explore the association between their knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) and the socio-demographic characteristics. Self-reported questionnaire contains 50 questions: 15 for knowledge, 15 for attitude, and 20 for practice on food safety. The results showed that the overall mean of the knowledge score is 3.25, attitude 3.65, and practice 3.36 respectively. There was a significant difference between the mean score for knowledge, practice and overall KAP in three aged groups. Also, the overall KAP scores were significantly (p < 0.05) affected by the education level, where the average scores increased with the level of education. Public health preventive education and program should be provided to the food handlers in order to minimize foodborne hazards.

Food safety knowledge, attitudes and practices of food handlers in restaurants in Kuwait

This study was conducted to evaluate the level of food safety knowledge, attitudes and practices among 402 food handlers in Kuwait restaurants. The information was collected through face to face interviews and questionnaires comprising four sections: demographic characteristics, knowledge, attitudes and practices. The results show that the majority of food handlers had sufficient knowledge 53.59 ± 16.68 (70%) showing very good knowledge particularly about personal hygiene (93%). Areas of concern were lack of knowledge about cross-contamination and sanitation (68%), time and temperature control for food (63%), and food pathogens (51%). For attitudes, results show that respondents had excellent positive attitudes with a mean score of 69.12 ± 9.97 (94%). Food handlers generally show very good practices 27.6 ± 7.03 (82%) particularly in personal hygiene. However, a few areas of poor practice include cross-contamination as well as time and temperature control. A significant positive correlation was observed between knowledge with practices (rs = 0.536, P < 0.05), knowledge with attitudes (rs = 0.407, P < 0.05), practices with attitudes (rs = 0.317, P < 0.05) and knowledge with training (rs = 0.59, P < 0.05), attitudes with training (rs = 0.314, P < 0.05) and practices with training (rs = 0.30 , P < 0.05 ). The study suggest that even though the knowledge, attitude and practice level of food handlers was satisfactory, some aspects related to crosscontamination, food pathogens and time and temperature control need to be stressed. Continuous food safety training for food handlers in Kuwait should become mandatory to strengthen food handlers in the areas which seem to be lacking. Training should not only focus on theoretical aspects of knowledge, but also be practical and foster positive attitudes towards food safety and promote good food safety practices.

FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH LEVEL OF FOOD SAFETY KNOWLEDGE AMONG FORM FOUR STUDENTS IN HULU LANGAT DISTRICT, SELANGOR

Background: Food safety protects consumers from risks of foodborne diseases and addresses the proper handling, preparing and storing of food. With foodborne diseases still remaining an important cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, food safety continues to be emphasized and enhancing consumer food safety knowledge and practice is one important measure to prevent foodborne diseases. Although there are efforts of food safety education in schools, there is still limited research regarding food safety knowledge and practice amongst consumers especially school students. Therefore, this research aims to determine the level and factors associated with food safety practice among form four students in Hulu Langat district, Selangor. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study using multi-stage sampling was conducted involving 610 form four students from six secondary schools in Hulu Langat. A self-administered questionnaire was used to determine the students’ food safety knowledge scores. A cut-off point of 70% was used (scores above or below this are considered ‘Good’ or ‘Insufficient’ level of knowledge). Descriptive and analytical analysis was done using the SPSS version 22.0 Result: The level of food safety knowledge is insufficient for majority of the students (62.8%). Good food safety knowledge was higher among the Malays (40.8%), those in the Pure Science stream (44%), those with parents who are food handlers (51.3%) and those with a previous experience of food poisoning (40.7%). The level of food safety knowledge is significantly associated with ethnicity (p=0.03), academic stream (p=0.02), whether their parents are food handlers (p=0.03) and previous experience of food poisoning (p=0.01). Conclusion: Majority of the form four students had insufficient level of knowledge on food safety. Thus, there is a need to further improve their knowledge. Factors like racial differences, family and academic background should be taken into consideration when constructing educational interventions to improve the level of knowledge. Keywords: food safety knowledge, students, secondary schools

An evaluation of the usefulness of British Columbia's guideline in educating food bank operators

&#x0D; Background: Food Distribution Organizations (FDOs), such as food banks, community kitchen, and meal programs, are essential resources to relieve food insecurity in British Columbia. FDOs collect, process, store, and distribute donated food to the needy population. The BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) published the Guidelines for Food Distribution Organizations with Grocery or Meal Programs in 2016 with purpose to educate FDOs on food safety and assist with their operational challenges. The guideline plays an important role especially for food bank operators who are not required to take food safety training. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the extent of the guideline use among food bank operators and assess its usefulness. This study also determines if the guideline use had a statistically significant association with higher knowledge in food safety. Methods: Self-administered electronic surveys created on Survey Monkey Canada were distributed to Foodbanks BC members by weekly online newsletter and email. The survey assessed the extent of usage of the guideline, current issues and knowledge level of FDO operators in BC. The survey response was collected over three weeks long period. Results: Among 37 FDO operators participated, 30 completed the survey. The majority of the operators was from BC, worked in food banks and had longer than 5 years long experience. 47% of participants did not know about the guideline. Among the guideline users, 83% agreed or strongly agreed that the guideline was useful. While retailers and groceries were the most common food donors, caterers and restaurants were the least common. Assessing each food item for safety was the most commonly encountered issue for FDOs. The least commonly encountered issue was having another FDO taking our donation from the donor. There was no association between the guideline use and level of food safety knowledge according to the Chi-square test (p= 0.89). There was no association between the years of experience and level of food safety knowledge (p= 0.23). The results did not show a statistically significant result potentially due to small sample size (n= 30). Conclusion: The results indicated while the guideline is useful among the users, the extent of its use should be widened. There is a need to improve accessibility of the guideline by modifying the content to address current practical issues, formatting it in a more user-friendly way, and utilizing better distribution means.&#x0D;

A cross sectional study on food safety knowledge among adult consumers

The purpose of this study was to assess the consumers' food safety knowledge and its determinants. The analysis was based on data collected through a cross-sectional survey in East Malaysia, which described the knowledge about personal hygiene, foodborne disease symptoms, high-risk foods, cross-contamination, and temperature control held by Sibu-based consumers. Up to 99.5% of consumers correctly answered the question on hand hygiene in food handling. However, only 23.3% had a detailed knowledge of the temperature effect on bacterial growth in food. The level of food safety knowledge differed by gender, age, education level, number of children and food preparation frequency. The logistic regression model used for this data found a high level of food safety knowledge among tertiary graduates (OR = 42.26; 95% CI: 9.97, 179.06). It also highlighted the importance of food safety knowledge as an effort to control foodborne diseases (FBD), by focusing on consumer food handling in the home and how to extent the benefits of food safety education to the whole society.

Food safety knowledge and microbiological hygiene of households in selected areas of Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa.

This study was conducted to determine the level of food safety knowledge and practices during food handling and preparation at household level in selected areas in KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. Fifty households were selected to participate based on their monthly income, age and educational level. Samples of raw foods were randomly collected from the participating households for microbial analyses. Swabs from food contact surfaces were also collected and analyzed for the presence of pathogens. Difference in demographic data regarding food safety knowledge was tested using chi-square and microbial counts were statistically analyzed (P<0.05). Knowledge of proper cold storage temperature was found to be inadequate as over 70% of respondents had no idea of their cold storage temperatures. High risk of cross contamination was observed due to improper thawing, packaging of meat with other ready to eat foods and poor food contact material handling. Microbial analyses of raw food samples showed the presence of aerobic spore formers (1.08-1.89 log cfu/mL), anaerobic spore formers (0.29-1.83 log cfu/mL) and Staphylococcus aureus (3.31-3.96 log cfu/mL). Contact surfaces were also positive for Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp and Escherichia coli. Food safety knowledge and proper food handling practices were found to be inadequate in the areas studied and urgent intervention is required to prevent fatal incidences of food borne illnesses.

Self-reported food safety knowledge and practices of Lebanese food handlers in Lebanese households

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to assess level of food safety knowledge and self-reported practices among Lebanese food handlers in Lebanese households and to identify the association between knowledge/practices and socio-demographic characteristics.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,500 participants from different gender, age, area of residence, income, marital status and education. They completed a questionnaire of six questions about demographics, and 26 questions related to knowledge and self-reported practices in terms of food handling, storage, usage of kitchen facilities and personal hygiene subgroups. SPSS v23 was used for statistical analyses. Student t-test and analysis of variance were conducted. Significance level of 0.05 was used.FindingsOn average, participants scored 55.6±16.3, 51.3±25.7, 67.4±19.3 and 89.1±16.3 on food handling, storage, usage of kitchen facilities and personal hygiene, respectively, whereas the passing (score above 50 percent) rates were 64.5, 69.9, 90.5 and 99.1, respectively, for the different subgroups. Gender had significant (p<0.05) effect on food handling and personal hygiene; age, marital status and education had significant (p<0.05) effect on handling, usage of kitchen facilities and personal hygiene; area of residence had significant (p<0.05) effect on storage, handling and usage of kitchen facilities; income had significant (p<0.05) effect on handling and usage of kitchen facilities. Overall mean food safety knowledge and self-reported practices score was 63.8±12.6; passing rate was 86.2; gender, age, area of residence, education, marital status and income had significant (p<0.05) effect. Food safety self-reported practices and knowledge scores were significantly (p<0.001) related to a weak to moderate correlation coefficient (R=0.34).Practical implicationsThe results confirm the need for ongoing educational initiatives to improve the relatively low food safety knowledge and practices among the Lebanese food handlers in Lebanese households.Originality/valueNo study has determined the food safety knowledge and self-reported practices of Lebanese food handlers in Lebanese households before.

FOOD SAFETY KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES AND PRACTICES AMONG FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE STUDENTS IN ABEOKUTA

Improper practices, poor attitudes and lack of knowledge by food handlers are contributing factors for the spread of foodborne diseases. Food safety knowledge is an important factor in improving food safety practices and subsequently food safety attitude. This study is aimed at exploring the food safety knowledge, practice and attitude of FUNAAB students. A self completed questionnaire was answered by randomly selected 270 students from each of the nine (9) colleges in the university and analyzed using SPSS software. The study revealed that almost all of the students had a high level of food safety awareness but the knowledge was not to large extent translated into practice. Majority of the students also had good food safety attitudes as many of them are willing to change their food handling behav-iour when they know they are incorrect (94.8%). The study further revealed similar level of food safety knowledge between the male and female. Despite the level of students’ knowledge, their choice of eating place on campus was determined by the price of the food. This study therefore concluded that good knowledge of food safety does not determine students’ safe handling practices and choice of eating place.Keywords: Food safety