3.1. General features of the participants
A total of 500 food handlers from 25 food factories were included in this study; 450 male and 50 female. The educational level for 60.3% was less than 10 years and had monthly income less than 400 J. D. The participants used in this study were selected from different food factories from different geographical location in Jordan; from North ( Irbid 8%), East (ArRuayshid 8%), Middle ( Amman 40% and AzZarqa 20%), South ( Al Karak 16%, Maan 8%) Figure–1. The age of participants was ranged between 18–55, and the experience ranged from 5 to 15 years.
3.2. Food handlers knowledge
The knowledge of food handlers during COVID–19 pandemic was higher than their knowledge before COVID–19 pandemic with a mean percentage score of 83.4 ± 8.3%, 73.3 ± 10.8 % respectively. The food handlers showed high knowledge in the sources of food contamination with food pathogens, food with high risk, risk factors for food poisoning, and storage conditions for food. In other hand, they demonstrated weak knowledge about reheating of cooked food, only 60% before COVID–19 and 67.5 after COVID–19 believed that previously prepared food should be reheated before eating. 65.5% before COVID–19 and 50% during COVID–19 thought that the correct method for thawing frozen food is to keep them at room temperature. 40% before COVID–19 and 55.3 % during COVID–19 from food handlers thought that healthy food workers might carry foodborne pathogens (Table 1).. previous study in South Africa to evaluate food handlers’ knowledge on food hygiene (n = 159) in small and micro enterprises, the percentage of correct answers was in average 46.0% (McSwane, D. et al. 2003) and in other study in Ankara, Turkey, the average of food safety knowledge score for food handlers (n = 764) was 43.4% ± 16.3% (Bas, M. et al. 2006). In Portugal, It was found that food handlers represented good level of knowledge in personal hygiene and cross contamination, but fared worse in other areas in a study consist from 124 food handlers in 32 school canteens (Campos, A. et al. 2009). On the other hand, many studies showed that food handlers had unsatisfied level for knowledge about food hygiene issues (Belot, M. and James, J. 2009, Clayton, D. and Griffith, C. J. 2004).
Our study demonstrated that there is an improvement in the knowledge of food handler during COVID–19 pandemic comparing with their Knowledge before COVID–19. This result is related to increase in training courses and educational levels in food safety during COVID–19, since the governmental agencies provided most premises with written instructions and training in food safety issues. recently no studies are available about food safety knowledge during COVID–19. In general, our food handlers have a good knowledge in food poisoning comparing with other studies carried out in United Kingdom Turkey, Slovenia, Italy and Portugal which demonstrated that food handlers lack the knowledge regarding food poisoning (Afifi, H. S. & Abushelaibi, A. 2012, Almanza, B. et al. 2007, Ansari-Lari, M. et al. 2010, Herztman, J. and Barrash, D. 2007, Hilton, J. 2002, Ko, W. H. 2010).
Table 1
Response of food workers in different food factories in Jordan to knowledge questions on food poisoning before and during COVID:19.
Question
|
Before COVID:19
|
During COVID:19
|
Positive Answer (%)
|
Positive Answer (%)
|
1) Unwashed raw vegetables has high risk for food poisoning
|
88.3
|
95.7
|
2) Bad hygienic practice for food handlers is a real source for food contamination with food pathogens
|
82.3
|
94.4
|
3) Left cooked food for more than 3 hours at room temperature will cause food poisoning
|
76.3
|
93.7
|
4) Keep food at refrigerator help in preventing food poisoning
|
84.5
|
95.5
|
5) Direct contact between workers hands and ready to eat food will cause direct food contamination with food borne pathogens
|
88.8
|
96.6
|
6) Left frozen food at room temperature for more than 12 hours is suitable method for thawing
|
65.5
|
50
|
7) In some cases food poisoning will cause death
|
66.3
|
76.3
|
8) Food workers doesn't show any food poisoning symptoms might carry food borne pathogens
|
40
|
55.3
|
9)Microbial numbers will increase rapidly at room temperature
|
55
|
79.4
|
10) Previously prepared food should be reheated before eating
|
60
|
67.5
|
11) Foodborne pathogens couldn't e be seen by naked eye
|
77.3
|
88.3
|
12) Meat and poultry should be placed on lower shelf in refrigerator than Vegetables
|
78.3
|
92.1
|
13) Pathogenic microbes will cause Food poisoning
|
72.2
|
88.2
|
14) Eating under cooked or raw food is highly risky for food poisoning
|
89.1
|
94.3
|
15) Flies and insects will transfer food borne pathogen
|
76.7
|
84.8
|
3.4. Food Handlers’ Attitude
The answers of food handlers about attitude questions on food poisoning is presented in Table 2. In general, the food handlers attitude toward safe food handling during COVID–19 was higher than their attitude before COVID–19 with mean percentage score of 91.3 % ± 12.7 and 88.36 % ± 10.7% respectively.
The response of food workers to good personal hygiene practice before and during COVID–19 is presented in Table 3. In general, the result showed good hygiene level for food handlers before and during COVID–19 with a mean percentage score of 74.54 % ± 11.6 % and 93.61 % ± 13.6. They have weak concept in hygienic practice before COVID–19. In general, most of them show attention about the hygienic rules of preparing food as covering the lesions, washing fresh vegetables and fruits in tap water before eating, wearing gloves during handling food products during preparing food products, separating raw food materials from finished food products. the results showed good improvement in their responses during COVID–19 such as cleaning and sanitizing food contact surfaces before and after preparing food, keeping food at room temperature more than 4 hours, washing their hands with water and soap after using the bathroom, and using mask during processing time. This study showed that weak correlation between the knowledge and food hygiene practice. that means good knowledge doesn’t necessarily result in good hygiene practice (Azjen, I. and Fishbein, M. 1980). Therefore, the training and educational courses for food workers should focus on critical non conformities and risk perception that may lead to unsafe practices (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2002).
Table 4
Response of food handlers in different Jordanian factories for their awareness about COVID-19 requirements.
Question
|
during COVID:19
|
(%) of positive response
|
(%) of Negative response
|
46)The company measure the employee’s temperature and assess their COVID:19 symptoms(fever, cough, or shortness of breath ) prior to them starting work.
|
90.3
|
9.7
|
47) You should maintain 6 feet and keep social distancing as work duties permit in the workplace.
|
80.5
|
19.5
|
48) You should clean and disinfect all working areas such as working surfaces, common areas, shared electronic equipment routinely.
|
76.4
|
23.6
|
94) You should inform the supervisor about your family member at home suffered from COVID-19 symptoms .
|
84
|
16
|
50) Corona viruses need host cell to multiply, so it cannot multiply in food.
|
55.5
|
44.5
|
51) Corona viruses can spread person-to-person by coughing or sneezing.
|
88.5
|
11.5
|
52) The virus will stay viable on plastic and stainless steel up to 72 hours, on copper, up to four hours and on cardboard up to 24 hours.
|
35
|
65
|
53) Face Masks and gloves can effectively reduce spreading corona virus.
|
82.1
|
17.9
|
54) wearing gloves is not a substitute for hand washing.
|
46
|
54
|
55) food workers should be provided with rules and instructions related to prevent spreading corona virus.
|
70
|
30
|
56) Food workers should not use cash money , instead they could use contactless payment.
|
54.7
|
45.3
|
57) Staff delivering to food premises should not leave their vehicles during delivery.
|
51.5
|
48.5
|
58) Food delivers should be aware about physical distancing when they pick up food and passing deliveries to other customers
|
84.4
|
15.6
|
59)The company should use special marks on the floor to facilitate physical distancing between workers, specialy in crowded areas.
|
70.6
|
29.4
|
60) The company should used regular reminders for customers about following physical distancing cleaning their hands regularly
|
40.5
|
59.5
|
The awareness of food handlers in Jordanian factories for COVID–19 requirements is presented in Table 4. In general, the results showed good awareness for the food handlers about COVID–19 requirements with a mean percentage score of 70.4 % ± 14.9 %. They have weak concept in scientific facts about corona virus, 44.5 % demonstrated that corona virus can multiply in food, 35% conducted that virus will stay viable for 72 hours on plastic and stainless steel, 4 hours on copper, and 24 hours on cardboard. 54% of food handlers believed that wearing disposable gloves will be a substitute for hand washing in the food work environment. 51.5% of staff delivering food and other drivers to food premises showed that they should not leave their vehicles during delivery. Only 40% of food companies used regular reminder for customers to follow physical distancing advice and clean their hands regularly and only 54.7% food premises encouraging the use of contactless payments. In general, most of them show good attention about COVID:19 symptoms: fever, cough, shortness of breath, keeping at least 6 feet as social distancing in the workplace and when picking up deliveries from customers, methods for spreading the virus from person-to-person by coughing and sneezing.