Food safety awareness and practices among food vendors in the basic schools in Bosomtwe District of the Ashanti Region

Abstract

Food vendors in school campuses have become an integral part of the lives of school children since everyday routines demand a significant amount of time. The number of diners continues to escalate and so has the number of food borne illness outbreaks as a result of food prepared in commercial foodservice operations. The study sought to ascertain the level of awareness and the degree of food safety practices among of food vendors in the Basic Schools in the Bosomtwe District. This leads to answer the following research questions. What are the relative levels of awareness on the food safety? What is the frequent practice of food vendors on food safety? What are the causes of non-compliance of food vendors to food safety awareness practices? What measures are used to ensure effective food safety awareness practices among food vendors? Questionnaires were used to collect primary data while secondary data was obtained from library, internet, journal and articles. The scope of the study was limited to Bosomtwe District where eight schools were selected. From the selected schools, questionnaires were administered to the respondents, upon which presentation and analysis were made using SPSS 17 based on their responses. The findings of the study established the following among others; vendors and consumers have high knowledge of food safety awareness as they know that food handler can cause food contamination, washing of bowls/plate/cups in soapy water at least twice before rinsing reduces the spread of germs and handling money with bare hands at the same time serving food with bare hands increases the risk of food contamination. The study recommended among others; authorities should ensure that all vendors go through formal training on food preparation after health screening before issued certificate to commence business. This will enable the vendors to exhibit proper food safety practices.