Status of food safety knowledge, attitude, and practices of caregivers of children in northern Uganda
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Date
2023-05-31
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Food Science and Nutrition
Abstract
The safety of homemade weaning foods in low- and middle- income countries is of
great concern as rural households have limited access to standardized commercial
weaning foods. In the Acholi subregion of Uganda, complementary foods are locally
produced. However, there is limited information on the Food safety knowledge (FSK),
food safety attitude (FSA), and food hygiene practices (FHP) of the caregivers. This
study examined food safety knowledge, attitude, and practices of the caregivers of
children 6– 23 months of age in Amuru and Nwoya districts, Northern Uganda, be
tween March 2019 and June 2019. A cross- sectional study was conducted involving
180 caregivers. Data were collected using semi- structured questionnaires and focus
group discussions and analyzed using descriptive statistics, multivariate binary logis
tic regression, and thematic content analysis. Caregivers had sufficient FSK (74.1%)
and positive FSA (68.1%). However, only 17.6% of them adhered to FHP. Frequency
of food safety training (p = .041) and households with children who suffered from
foodborne illness (p = .001) significantly predicted FSK. Conversely, both FSK and FSA
were significantly predicted by gender roles in decision- making on household income
(p = .006) and households with older children (p = .041). A significant positive correla
tion was observed between FSK and FSA (r = .406, p = .000). However, major barriers
to adherence to FHP were inadequate sanitation facilities and caregiver's workload.
The overall nontranslation of sufficient FSK and positive FSA into proper FHP calls for
future intervention to harness the sociodemographic factors that influence FSK and
FSA and address the barriers to FHP among caregivers.
Description
Correspondence Eunice Achiro, Department of Food Science and Postharvest Technology, Faculty of Agriculture and Environment, Gulu University, Gulu, Uganda. Email: e.achiro@gu.ac.ug
Keywords
behavior, caregivers, complementary foods, food hygiene, food safety, homemade
Citation
Achiro, E., Okidi, L., Echodu, R., Alarakol, S. P., Nassanga, P., & Ongeng, D. (2023). Status of food safety knowledge, attitude, and practices of caregivers of children in northern Uganda. Food Science & Nutrition, 11(9), 5472-5491.