Abstract:
Food safety is a critical issue facing the foodservice industry and therefore an
understanding of the possible deterrents to Food Safety Management (FSM) is
important. The purpose of this study was therefore to assess the determinants of FSM
among food handlers in selected hotels in Eldoret Town, Kenya. The specific
objectives were to: establish food handlers’ knowledge on FSM; investigate food
handlers’ practices of FSM; analyze the relationship between food handlers’
knowledge and practice of FSM; establish the association between food handler’s
selected demographic factors and FSM; assess the role of management in
implementing FSM; and finally explore the effect of kitchen physical environment on
food handlers’ FSM. The study adopted both descriptive and explanatory research
designs. Twelve conventional hotels were purposively selected and all 106 food
handlers in the hotels were recruited into the study. Data was collected by use of
structured questionnaires, interviews and observation. Quantitative data was analyzed
with the help of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21 and excel.
Pearson Chi-square test of independence and Pearson Correlation analysis were
performed to test association between the various variables under study. Content
analysis was used to analyze qualitative data and results presented in narrative form.
The findings of this study revealed that over 95% of the respondents had adequate
knowledge on FSM. However, there was no significant correlation between
knowledge and FSM (r = .147, p = .174). The results further revealed that there was a
significant relationship between position held in the establishment and management of
purchase and storage (X 2 = 106.013, df = 70, p < 0.05), as well as, management of
temperature control (X 2 = 132,256, df = 70, p < 0.05). Similarly, there was a
relationship between level of education and management of purchase and storage (X 2
= 52.901, df = 30, p < 0.05). Results from interviews and observation showed that
management factors such as training, supervision, and enforcement of FSM rules as
well as kitchen physical environment were crucial in enabling food handlers to
manage FSM. From the study it was concluded that knowledge on FSM, position
held in the establishment, level of education, kitchen physical environment, and
management factors were the main determinants of FSM. This study therefore
recommends that adequate kitchen physical environment for food handling should be
provided in the hotels and managers should ensure close supervision of food handlers
at all times to ensure adherence to FSM rules, and finally, special emphasis should be
placed on practical rather than theoretical training on FSM which should target both
the food handlers and managers.
