Assessment of knowledge, attitudes and practices of food handlers regarding food safety in Lahore, Pakistan

Background: Food Safety is an important central focusing point related to health of all communities in the entire world. Food related diseases are accountable for most of deaths and illnesses all over the world. Aim: To assess the attitudes, practices and knowledge of food managers regarding food safety in Lahore. Method: a cross sectional study was done regarding food safety in Lahore, Pakistan for 4 months (After the approval of synopsis) by using purposive sampling. A total of 97 participants were taken from different cafes and restaurants in different parts of Lahore, Pakistan. Data was collected through purposive sampling. Participants were assessed through pre-tested questionnaire. For data analysis SPSS version 25.0 was used. Results: The overall knowledge of food safety was revealed by Food managers (mean score= 62.4 ± 33.6%). The interviewees achieved high scores in construct of personal hygiene (mean score= 92.6 ± 7.0%) out of 6 constructs on food safety knowledge tested, but had less knowledge about the symptoms of food borne diseases (mean score= 54.0 ± 36.0%) and food borne pathogens (mean score= 20.0 ± 26.0%). Conclusions: The conclusion was that in different parts of Lahore, Pakistan food handlers had a better knowledge of food safety with overall moderate level of self-reported practices and attitude. However, majority of them did not know about the pathogens that cause food borne diseases.