Food safety knowledge and practices of food handlers in restaurants in the tamale metropolis, Ghana

Abstract

This study assessed the food safety knowledge and practices of food handlers in restaurants in the Tamale Metropolis. A descriptive research design was employed for the study. Data were collected from 214 food handlers in 23 restaurants within Tamale Metropolis through a multi-stage sampling method. Data were analyzed, using STATA version 15. Frequency, percentage, means, independent sample t-test, chi square and one-way ANOVA were the main tools used for the analysis. The results showed that the 77% of the food handlers in the restaurants were knowledgeable in food safety issues but this did not translate into food safety practices. Thus, there exist a gap between knowledge and practice. They were found to be more knowledgeable in environmental hygiene issues but fell short in some food hygiene issues such as knowledge on thawing frozen foods and storage of food items under appropriate refrigeration temperatures. The study also identified five major barriers to food safety practices such as time constraint and busy work schedule, lack or inadequate knowledge, lack of enforcement of food safety rules and regulations, inadequate resources or supplies and forgetfulness or lack of reminders. Based on these findings, it was concluded that, food handlers were knowledgeable about food safety issues, but did not put the knowledge into practice. It was therefore recommended that, facility managers in collaboration with the environmental health officers, and Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) put in place more stringent monitoring and supervision measures to improve on the food safety practices of food handlers in restaurants. More practical work be included in the curriculum for training manpower for the hospitality industry.