Assessing food safety and associated food handling practices in street food vending

Abstract

Street vendors in the city of Bloemfontein were investigated in order to assess the microbiological quality of the food being sold as well as the level of hygiene conditions under which these food stalls operate. The food samples which were collected included beef, chicken and gravy, while surface samples were taken from the food preparation tables and the hands of the vendors. A structured questionnaire and checklist were used in interviews to determine the status of the vending sites and associated food handling practices. The overall microbiological quality of the foods served by the street vendors was found to be within acceptable safety limits, although the presence of specific microorganisms such as Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella and yeasts is indicative of a degree of ignorance on the part of the food handlers towards proper hygienic practices.

Faeco-oral parasitic infection in street food vendors in Tamale, Ghana

“…In the current study of street food vendors in the Tamale metropolitan area it was observed that female population 115(76.7%) was higher than that of males 35 (23.3%) ( Table 1). The results agree with Lues et al, (2006) who stated that street food vending is a common incomegenerating venture particularly for women in developing countries.…”

Meat retail conditions within the establishments of Kigali city (Rwanda): bacteriological quality and risk factors for Salmonella occurrence

“…Protective clothes, such as proper aprons, hairnets and gloves, are barriers against microorganisms that may be transferred from handlers to meat and should always be worn during the handling of meat, to prevent microbial contaminations from the handler. Previous studies have identified bare hands (Heinz & Hautzinger, 2007), dirty clothes (Cardinale et al, 2005) and worker's hairs (Lues et al, 2006), as probable sources of meat microbial contamination.…”

Assessment of Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Food Handlers in <i>Attieke</i> Production Units in Relation to Food Hygiene and Safety in Côte d’Ivoire in 2012

“…Reference [35] evaluated the hands of handlers at the university restaurant of the Federal University of Santa Maria of Brazil and found that 27% of the samples showed the presence of S. aureus and fecal coliforms. Reference [36] also found E. coli, S. aureus and Salmonella on the hands of food handlers in Africa; in addition to unsuitable food handling practices as our results has showed it.…”