Abstract
Background: Food safety is defined as an assurance that the food will not cause the consumer any harm if prepared and/or consumed in accordance with the use for which it is intended. Food safety is necessary to prevent foodborne illnesses and improve human health. However, due to poor food safety, a rise in foodborne-related diseases has been reported over the years and this has adversely affected the health of many developed and developing countries. The rise is more pronounced in the developing countries due to the increasing evidence of food safety neglect. The food safety neglect has been more common within the rapidly growing informal food sector. In South Africa for example, the street food sector is expanding rapidly in magnitude and proportion. Hence, the overall objective of this study was to investigate the level of knowledge and practices on food safety amongst street food vendors in the Durban Central Business District (CBD), South Africa.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design using a quantitative method to describe the food safety knowledge and practices amongst street food vendors in Durban CBD was employed. The study population comprised of street food vendors who were selling vendor-cooked foods. EPI INFO version 7.2.5.0 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was utilised to determine the sample size for a population survey design. The sample size for the study was calculated to be 360 participants. A convenience sampling technique was used to select people for participation in the study. An interviewer-administered pre-coded structured questionnaire was utilised for data collection. Data analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 29 software. To assess the level of food safety knowledge, and to determine the food safety practices amongst the street food vendors, frequency distributions were done. Chi-square tests of association or independence were conducted to ascertain relationships or associations between certain variables. A statistical significance was established when p-value was less than 0.05 (or 5%).
Results: In this study, 360 street food vendors participated - this equated to a 100% response rate. A majority of street food vendors who participated in the study were females (68.6%, 247). Young adults aged from 19-32 dominated the study. More than 50% (180) of the participants were below the age of 32 years. A majority of participants (70.5%, 253), had secondary education. About 63.8% (230) of participants were registered with the municipality as vendors. More than two-thirds (67.8%, 244) of the participants knew that cooking food
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thoroughly at an appropriate temperature of 70⁰C is critical in killing virtually all the pathogens. A slim majority of 51.9% (187) of participants knew that food sold hot cannot be stored at ambient temperatures. Only 23.9% (86) of participants knew that in South Africa, the legally required core temperature of heated food products that are stored, transported, or displayed for sale is ≥+60⁰C. Similarly, merely 14.7% (53) of participants possessed knowledge that in South Africa, the legally required core temperature of chilled food products that are stored, transported, or displayed for sale is ≤+5⁰C. A minority of participants (42.2%, 152) knew that safe water cannot be seen by the way it looks. About 14.7% (53) of participants knew that contaminated food does not always have some change in colour, smell, and taste. Regarding practices, a majority of participants (85.8%, 309) use soap and water in a container to wash their hands. And only 8.9% (32) of participants use soap and running water to wash their hands. 51.5% (185) do not handle food when also handling money. Participants who store prepared food during vending hours in pots at ambient temperatures were 70% (252). A further 18.9% (68) of participants store prepared food during vending hours in containers at ambient temperatures. Only 11.1% (40) of participants store prepared food in warmers. About 37.8% (136) of participants continuously or sometimes rub their hands on the face, hair, arms, and nose openings when handling food. A significant association between the participants’ demographic information and their food safety knowledge and practices was noted. A statistical significance was established when the p-value was less than 0.05 (or 5%).
Conclusion: There is still a gap in knowledge amongst street food vendors regarding cooking and holding temperatures, water safety, and characteristics of contaminated food. Furthermore, there were still some concerns about handling of food and money at the same time, inappropriate storage of prepared food, incorrect techniques employed during handwashing, and rubbing of hands on the face, hair, arms, and nostrils when handling food. It is evident that more training is necessary regarding food safety knowledge and practices amongst the street food vendors. There was also a significant association between the participants’ demographic information and their food safety knowledge and practices.