Abstract:
Background: Food safety is a public health concern. An adequate supply of safe, wholesome, and healthy food is essential to the health and well-being of humans. People can get sick when they eat food contaminated with food hazards, which referred to as a foodborne disease. To ensure food safety, safe steps in food storing, handling and cooking, are essential to prevent food borne illness in every step of food preparation.
Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the magnitude food safety practice and associated factors of food handlers working in food industries in Bahir Dar City.
Methods: Institution based cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 422 food handlers in a food factory were selected by simple random sampling technique and included in the study. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on socio-demographic, behavioral, knowledge and environmental-related factors. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were carried out using SPSS version 23. And the Statistically significance association of factors were declared significance at P-value 0.05.
Results: A total of 422 participants were included in the study. From the total study participants, 47.4% were females. Almost eighty percent (82.9%) of the participants found to be in the age group of 19-29 years. The mean and standard deviation wase 31± 11 ) years.
Among the study participants, 221(52.4%) had poor food safety practices.From food handlers working in food industries males AOR 2.41(95% CI: 1.36-4.29), whose educational status informal education status AOR 3.91 (95% CI: 1.26, 12.07),who were work in production area AOR 2.72(1.51, 4.89),Who had absence of regular supervision AOR 4.03(2.16,7.53),Those food handlers who did not given food safety training AOR 4.84 (2.18,10.76), and who had poor attitudeAOR 3.47 (1.09,11.06) were identified as the factors having significant associated with the food safety practices of industrial food handlers.
Conclusion:The level food safety practice in this study is relatively low. Factors including, sex, who had informal educational status, who were working in production area, who had poor attitude, who did not given food safety training and absence of regular supervision are significantly associated with food safety practiceof workers working in food industries of Bahir Dar city.
Keyword: Food safety practice; poor food safety practices, good food safety practices Food handlers; Food industries, Bahir Dar