How do food safety concerns affect consumer behaviors and diets in low- and middle-income countries? A systematic review

Abstract

Both food safety and dietary behaviors are major contributors to the global burden of disease, especially in rapidly urbanising environments. The impact that food safety concerns have on dietary behaviors in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) is insufficiently documented. Therefore, we examined whether food safety concerns influence consumer behaviors/diets in LMICs. A systematic review identified 46 relevant studies from 20 LMICs for inclusion. A socio-ecological food environment framework was used to map food safety factors that influence consumer behaviors (food acquisition/purchase, eating out of home, food preparation/storage) and diets (consumption of nutrient rich/poor foods). Several studies (n = 11) reported that despite food safety concerns, consumers could not always ensure that they consumed safe food; barriers were affordability, accessibility and appeal. Key concerns included fear of pesticides, fertilizers, hygiene in/around food outlets, unhygienic vendor practices and household storage/preparation methods. These concerns may reduce consumption of animal sourced food and fresh fruit and vegetables; and increase consumption of starchy staples and processed/ packaged foods. Policies such as upgrading urban market infrastructure to enhance food safety, accompanied by nutrition and hygiene education, could lead to increased accessibility, affordability and appeal of safe, nutrientrich foods. Thus, reducing the appeal of packaged/processed food as a means to mitigate food safety risk; thereby contributing to preventing foodborne disease and multiple forms of malnutrition.

What Is Safe and How Much Does It Matter? Food Vendors’ and Consumers’ Views on Food Safety in Urban Nigeria

“…An additional finding of note under the first research question was the prominence of processed and packaged foods among the foods listed as “safe”, as well as the tendency for some respondents to equate “foreign” or “industrial” foods with being safer than “local” or unprocessed foods. Similar findings for packaged foods have been identified in other LMICs [ 40 ]. The association of local food with “less safe” has also been noted in Brazil [ 47 ], while researchers in high-income countries, as well as Vietnam, have found the opposite association (local foods being seen as intrinsically safer [ 41 , 47 , 51 ]).…”

“…The main foods flagged by experts as food safety concerns in Nigeria are thus mostly animal-sourced foods, particularly pork (due to pig tapeworm, Taenia solium ), poultry, and beef, as well as fruit and vegetables, due primarily to bacterial contamination (e.g., with Salmonella and pathogenic E. coli ) [ 6 ]. The prioritization of chemical hazards over biological hazards is not uncommon: similar concerns have been found among consumers in many LMICs [ 40 ], such as Kenya, Vietnam, and Ghana [ 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 ], as well as in high-income countries [ 47 ]. This may be due to the human tendency to overweigh risks that are poorly understood or beyond one’s perceived personal control, such as chemical contamination [ 48 ].…”

Logam Berat dan Probabilistik Penilaian Risiko Kesehatan Melalui Konsumsi Beras dari Lahan Sawah di Hulu Sungai Citarum

“…Saat ini keamanan pangan merupakan isu penting di seluruh dunia, 1 sehingga banyak negara telah menetapkan peraturan yang ketat untuk keamanan pangan di negaranya. 2 Keamanan pangan dapat mempengaruhi perilaku konsumsi masyarakat, 3 seperti adanya pestisida dan pupuk yang digunakan petani merupakan salah satu penyebab kekhawatiran masyarakat dalam mengkonsumsi bahan makanan dari produk pertanian. 4 Logam berat dapat masuk ke tubuh manusia melalui 3 jalur yaitu penelanan, inhalasi dan kontak kulit, 5 konsumsi makanan merupakan jalur utama paparan logam berat dapat terakumulasi pada tubuh manusia.…”

Metal-Organic Frameworks-Based Sensors for Food Safety

“…Such an over-increasing of population leads to the high demand for food production and commercialization, which also attracts significant attention to ensure food safety and quality control to meet consumer expectations toward decreasing the critical problem of foodborne disease [1,2]. According to the reports of World Health Organization (WHO), food regulations and safety measures have been taken into account of the global health concerns and the trend of foodborne disease has become a challenge that remains in outbreak investigation [1,3]. Major food hazards (biological, chemical, or physical) could enter into the food supply chain at any time during harvesting, processing, transporting, preparing, storing, and serving food (Figure 1).…”