Survey of domestic food handling practices in New Zealand

From January to September 2013, a marked increase in notifications of Salmonella Paratyphi A infections among travellers returning from Cambodia occurred in France. An investigation revealed 35 cases without a common source: 21 in France, five in Germany, three in the Netherlands, one in Norway, one in the United Kingdom, four in New-Zealand. Data suggest an ongoing event that should trigger further investigation. Travellers to Cambodia should observe preventive measures including good personal hygiene and food handling practices.

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Application of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point Methodology and Risk-Based Grading to Consumer Food Safety Surveys

Journal of Food Protection ◽

10.4315/0362-028x.jfp-11-545 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 75 (9) ◽

pp. 1673-1690 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

ELIN HALBACH RØSSVOLL ◽

ØYDIS UELAND ◽

THERESE HAGTVEDT ◽

EIVIND JACOBSEN ◽

RANDI LAVIK ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Food Safety ◽

Hazard Analysis ◽

Control Point ◽

Grading System ◽

Food Handling ◽

Critical Control Point ◽

Handling Practices ◽

Survey Responses ◽

Food Handling Practices ◽

Domestic Food

Traditionally, consumer food safety survey responses have been classified as either “right” or “wrong” and food handling practices that are associated with high risk of infection have been treated in the same way as practices with lower risks. In this study, a risk-based method for consumer food safety surveys has been developed, and HACCP (hazard analysis and critical control point) methodology was used for selecting relevant questions. We conducted a nationally representative Web-based survey (n = 2,008), and to fit the self-reported answers we adjusted a risk-based grading system originally developed for observational studies. The results of the survey were analyzed both with the traditional “right” and “wrong” classification and with the risk-based grading system. The results using the two methods were very different. Only 5 of the 10 most frequent food handling violations were among the 10 practices associated with the highest risk. These 10 practices dealt with different aspects of heat treatment (lacking or insufficient), whereas the majority of the most frequent violations involved storing food at room temperature for too long. Use of the risk-based grading system for survey responses gave a more realistic picture of risks associated with domestic food handling practices. The method highlighted important violations and minor errors, which are performed by most people and are not associated with significant risk. Surveys built on a HACCP-based approach with risk-based grading will contribute to a better understanding of domestic food handling practices and will be of great value for targeted information and educational activities.

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Consumer Food Handling in the Home: A Review of Food Safety Studies

Journal of Food Protection ◽

10.4315/0362-028x-66.1.130 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 66 (1) ◽

pp. 130-161 ◽

Cited By ~ 430

Author(s):

ELIZABETH C. REDMOND ◽

CHRISTOPHER J. GRIFFITH

Keyword(s):

Food Safety ◽

Observational Studies ◽

The United States ◽

Food Preparation ◽

Foodborne Disease ◽

Food Handling ◽

Safety Studies ◽

Handling Practices ◽

Food Handling Practices ◽

Domestic Food

Epidemiological data from Europe, North America, Australia, and New Zealand indicate that a substantial proportion of foodborne disease is attributable to improper food preparation practices in consumers' homes. International concern about consumer food safety has prompted considerable research to evaluate domestic food-handling practices. The majority of consumer food safety studies in the last decade have been conducted in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland (48%) and in the United States (42%). Surveys (questionnaires and interviews), the most frequent means of data collection, were used in 75% of the reviewed studies. Focus groups and observational studies have also been used. One consumer food safety study examined the relationship between pathogenic microbial contamination from raw chicken and observed food-handling behaviors, and the results of this study indicated extensive Campylobacter cross-contamination during food preparation sessions. Limited information about consumers' attitudes and intentions with regard to safe food-handling behaviors has been obtained, although a substantial amount of information about consumer knowledge and self-reported practices is available. Observation studies suggest that substantial numbers of consumers frequently implement unsafe food-handling practices. Knowledge, attitudes, intentions, and self-reported practices did not correspond to observed behaviors, suggesting that observational studies provide a more realistic indication of the food hygiene actions actually used in domestic food preparation. An improvement in consumer food-handling behavior is likely to reduce the risk and incidence of foodborne disease. The need for the development and implementation of food safety education strategies to improve specific food safety behaviors is reviewed in this paper.

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Toward Improving Food Safety in the Domestic Environment: A Multi-Item Rasch Scale for the Measurement of the Safety Efficacy of Domestic Food-Handling Practices

Risk Analysis ◽

10.1111/j.1539-6924.2006.00813.x ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 26 (5) ◽

pp. 1323-1338 ◽

Cited By ~ 67

Author(s):

Arnout R. H. Fischer ◽

Lynn J. Frewer ◽

Maarten J. Nauta

Keyword(s):

Food Safety ◽

Food Handling ◽

Domestic Environment ◽

Handling Practices ◽

Food Handling Practices ◽

Domestic Food

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Improving safe food-handling practices by increasing self-efficacy

Food Control ◽

10.1016/j.foodcont.2021.108361 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 108361

Author(s):

Denise van Rijen ◽

Enrique Mergelsberg ◽

Gill ten Hoor ◽

Barbara Mullan

Keyword(s):

Self Efficacy ◽

Food Handling ◽

Handling Practices ◽

Safe Food ◽

Food Handling Practices

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Simulating Cross-Contamination of Cooked Pork with Salmonella enterica from Raw Pork through Home Kitchen Preparation in Vietnam

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph15102324 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 15 (10) ◽

pp. 2324 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Sinh Dang-Xuan ◽

Hung Nguyen-Viet ◽

Phuc Pham-Duc ◽

Delia Grace ◽

Fred Unger ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Salmonella Enterica ◽

Household Survey ◽

Cross Contamination ◽

Food Handling ◽

Transfer Rates ◽

Handling Practices ◽

Food Handling Practices ◽

Cutting Boards ◽

Insight Into ◽

Pork Consumption

Pork is the most commonly consumed meat in Vietnam, and Salmonella enterica is a common contaminant. This study aimed to assess potential S. enterica cross-contamination between raw and cooked pork in Vietnamese households. Different scenarios for cross-contamination were constructed based on a household survey of pork handling practices (416 households). Overall, 71% of people used the same knife and cutting board for both raw and cooked pork; however, all washed their hands and utensils between handling raw and cooked pork. The different scenarios were experimentally tested. First, S. enterica was inoculated on raw pork and surfaces (hands, knives and cutting boards); next, water used for washing and pork were sampled to identify the presence and concentration of S. enterica during different scenarios of food preparation. Bootstrapping techniques were applied to simulate transfer rates of S. enterica cross-contamination. No cross-contamination to cooked pork was observed in the scenario of using the same hands with new cutting boards and knives. The probability of re-contamination in the scenarios involving re-using the cutting board after washing was significantly higher compared to the scenarios which used a new cutting board. Stochastic simulation found a high risk of cross-contamination from raw to cooked pork when the same hands, knives and cutting boards were used for handling raw and cooked pork (78%); when the same cutting board but a different knife was used, cross-contamination was still high (67%). Cross-contamination between was not seen when different cutting boards and knives were used for cutting raw and cooked pork. This study provided an insight into cross-contamination of S. enterica, given common food handling practices in Vietnamese households and can be used for risk assessment of pork consumption.

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Poultry: the most common food in outbreaks with known pathogens, United States, 1998–2012

Epidemiology and Infection ◽

10.1017/s0950268816002375 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 145 (2) ◽

pp. 316-325 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

S. J. CHAI ◽

D. COLE ◽

A. NISLER ◽

B. E. MAHON

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

The United States ◽

Food Handlers ◽

Food Handling ◽

Food Category ◽

Foodborne Outbreaks ◽

Handling Practices ◽

Safe Food ◽

Private Homes ◽

Food Handling Practices

SUMMARYAs poultry consumption continues to increase worldwide, and as the United States accounts for about one-third of all poultry exports globally, understanding factors leading to poultry-associated foodborne outbreaks in the United States has important implications for food safety. We analysed outbreaks reported to the United States’ Foodborne Disease Outbreak Surveillance System from 1998 to 2012 in which the implicated food or ingredient could be assigned to one food category. Of 1114 outbreaks, poultry was associated with 279 (25%), accounting for the highest number of outbreaks, illnesses, and hospitalizations, and the second highest number of deaths. Of the 149 poultry-associated outbreaks caused by a confirmed pathogen, Salmonella enterica (43%) and Clostridium perfringens (26%) were the most common pathogens. Restaurants were the most commonly reported location of food preparation (37% of poultry-associated outbreaks), followed by private homes (25%), and catering facilities (13%). The most commonly reported factors contributing to poultry-associated outbreaks were food-handling errors (64%) and inadequate cooking (53%). Effective measures to reduce poultry contamination, promote safe food-handling practices, and ensure food handlers do not work while ill could reduce poultry-associated outbreaks and illnesses.

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An Investigation Into How Far Do Residents Adopt Measures to Reduce Microbial Hazards During Food Handling

Current Research in Nutrition and Food Science Journal ◽

10.12944/crnfsj.5.1.02 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 06-14

Author(s):

Rajesh Jeewon ◽

Seerauj Nouvishika ◽

Dauharry Kumar ◽

Ahinsa Jheelan-Ramchandur

Keyword(s):

Food Safety ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Critical Role ◽

Basic Knowledge ◽

Personal Hygiene ◽

Food Hygiene ◽

Food Handling ◽

Handling Practices ◽

Food Handling Practices ◽

The Impact

Foodborne diseases have always been linked to numerous food manufacturing elements and home practices of purchasers and the latter does play a critical role in disease prevention. Consumers have the ultimate responsibility for handling and storing food safely and take adequate safety precautions when preparing and consuming food at home to avoid health related problems associated with microbial hazards. The objectives of this survey were to evaluate current knowledge of consumers pertaining to food hygiene and food safety concepts as well as to assess food handling practices that residents adopt to reduce microbial hazards in the domestic environment. A sample of 300 Mauritian residents were selected to participate in a questionnaire based survey. Questions in the questionnaire were based on hygienic practices with respect to food handling, food safety and personal hygiene. SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) was used to analyze the results and Microsoft excel was used to generate pie charts, and bar charts. The results obtained demonstrated that the level of knowledge pertaining to food safety and food hygiene and how to reduce microbial hazards were above average. Majority of the residents were knowledgeable about major aspects related to proper food handling behaviors but need more education pertaining to the use of thermometers to check for food temperature. The nature of the risk, personal and environmental factors (psychological, demographic and socio-economic factors, cultural and economic) were found to be the factors affecting food safety behaviors among consumers. Consumers can become more motivated to improve their behaviors if they are made aware of the impact of risky practices. Although, most consumers had basic knowledge pertaining to food safety, food hygiene and food handling practices, it is important to continually inform consumers about safe food handling practices through various channels.

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