Abstract
Background: Food safety includes handling, storing, and preparing food to prevent contamination and ensures that food maintains nutrients adequate for a healthy diet. Unsafe food leads to diseases.
Objective: The aim of the study was to assess the knowledge and beliefs of tuck shop owners regarding food safety in Vosloorus, Ekurhuleni, South Africa.
Methods: A quantitative case-control study with a 100 % sample size of 324 tuck shop owners as participants was used. All participants did not have a Certificate of Acceptability. The Study was conducted in Vosloorus, Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, South Africa. A self-administered questionnaire was used as the method of data collection and participants were selected using simple random sampling. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS version 26) was used to calculate the adjusted odds ratios using multivariate and logistic regression to establish the probability or likelihood of factors associated with knowledge, attitude and beliefs when it comes to food safety. The statistical significance of the relationship among variables was determined using the confidence intervals and data is presented in tables and figures.
Results: Tuck shop owners with primary and secondary education were significantly more likely to be knowledgeable about food safety Odds Ratios (OR) 5.88, 95%CI (2.34-14.63), (OR) 1.72, 95%CI (0.89-3.39), but the association did not hold in the adjusted analysis respectively. Tuck shop owners from Pakistan, Bangladesh, India and other ethnicities were significantly more likely to be knowledgeable about food safety in adjusted odds ratios but the association with Pakistan did not hold in the adjusted analysis. Compared to females, males were more likely not to agree with the statement that said, “Whether the vehicle is open or enclosed when transporting food, it does not matter”, on crude odds ratio OR 5.84, 95%CI (1.77-19.30). Study participants who did not believe in the statement “The cleaner the environment the safer the food” were more likely to be male in crude analysis OR 13.20, 95%CI (1.78-97.68).
Conclusion: With such serious gaps and challenges in the knowledge of tuck shop owners regarding food safety, there is a need to educate them and extend such programs to the general public.
Keywords: food safety, tuck shop owners, Certificate of Acceptability, food storage, foodstuffs transportation, environmental health.