Consumer food safety behaviour may be considered the lynchpin in the food chain continuum from ‘farm to fork’ as they may handle food as they see fit and epidemiological data indicates that the home is an important point of origin for up to 87 per cent of foodborne illness.
In this study, the well documented difficulties inherent in measuring self-reported engagement in unsafe food practices and the overoptimistic reporting of personal food safety practices by consumers are addressed. The study involved:
(a) Filming participants while they prepared a meal according to specified recipes in a test kitchen environment and in their own home,
(b) Swabbing key contamination sites in the kitchens for microbiological testing,
(c) Sampling the meat and salad components of cooked meals for microbiological testing,
(d) Recording chill-chain temperature data,
(e) Inspecting of the meat after cooking, and
(f) Carrying out a survey of knowledge, attitudes and perceptions among participants.
The main findings are:
- Bacteria brought into the home on food can transfer to other surfaces in the kitchen environment.
- Cross-contamination is statistically linked to the presence of bacteria in food after cooking.
- Higher levels of ‘perceived utility of safe food practices in the prevention of food poisoning’ were positively associated with educational attainment and age.
- Higher perceived risk from food handling practices was positively associated with age.
- In the domestic kitchens, observed food safety practices, higher frequency of participants conducting their own cooking and higher scores for observed hand cleanliness were statistically linked to food safety knowledge.
- The Critical Control Points (CCPs) identified were:
- CCP1: cooking.
- CCP2: cross-contamination
- CCP3: food storage temperature
- The two safe food practices with the lowest perceived utility in the prevention of food poisoning were CCP2 and CCP3 (above).
Key recommendations
This study suggests that food safety campaigns, guided by the hierarchy of risks identified in this research, should target the young and less educated public about the potential of raw food to harbour pathogens, as well as the actual risk of unsafe behaviour and utility of safe food practices. Based on the specified critical control points it is recommended that food safety campaigns focus primarily on the risks associated with incorrect cooking procedures, cross-contamination (of hands, utensils and taps) and, finally, correct food storage practices.
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