CULINARY HYGIENE PRACTICES AND KNOWLEDGE OF READY-TO EAT FOOD VENDORS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA, NSUKKA

Abstract

Foodborne diseases remain a significant public health issue in developing countries,
Nigeria inclusive. This occurs when food safety is compromised along the food chain.
The major objective of this paper was to evaluate the knowledge and practices of food
hygiene among ready-to-eat food vendors in the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN)
community. The study raised four research questions. A descriptive cross-sectional
survey design was employed. A total of 200 food vendors were purposively selected. A
structured questionnaire and an observation checklist were used to collect data.

A
reliability test of the instrument was established through a pilot study. Data analysis
was performed using IBM SPSS (version 23). Chi-square test was applied to assess
associations at a significance level of p < 0.05. Findings revealed that majority had
high knowledge of personal hygiene and environmental hygiene (81.5%; 83.5 %;) while
only 42.5% had high knowledge of food hygiene and 56.5% had average knowledge.
Ratings on hygiene practices showed that personal hygiene rated 23.5%, 18.5% and
58.0% for poor, average and high respectively. Environmental hygiene rating was poor
(12.5%), average (38.5%), and high (49.0%). Food hygiene was 18.5% (poor) 61.5%
(average) and 20.0% (high). A significant association was found between food hygiene
knowledge and practice (p < 0.05). The study concludes that while majority of the
respondents have substantial knowledge and adherence to hygiene practices, gaps
exists that could pose health risks to their patrons. Therefore, it is recommended that
the university authority implement a mandatory hygiene training program for all food
vendors.