ABSTRACT
This study investigated the Strategies for Enhancing the Hygiene Practices Needed by Canteens in Bida community of Niger State. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The population comprised residents and canteens from the communities. The sample size for the study was 548 respondents. Structured interview schedule and questionnaire were used as the instruments for data collection. The instrument was face-validated by experts and Cronbach Alpha method used in computing the reliability estimates. Four research questions and one null hypothesis guided the study. Mean and standard deviations were used to analyze the research questions while t-test was applied in testing the hypothesis at 0.05 level of significance. The following findings were made: Food hygiene practices needed by canteens include: keeping kitchen areas clean, using clean water in cleaning utensils, buying fresh foods such as fruits and vegetables without bruises among others. Personal hygiene practices needed by canteens include: bathing on regular basis, wearing apron and cap regularly washing hand with clean water and soap after toilet, using clean towel among others. Environmental hygiene practices needed by canteens include: not allowing people urinate around the selling premises, having a standard waste bin, covering waste bin always etc. Strategies needed to enhance the hygiene practices of canteens include: setting up food committee in public primary communities, the food committee should inspect the food before they are sold to children, canteens should undergo medical checkup before permitted to sell in communities etc. The researcher in general recommended that government, non-governmental bodies, residents, health workers and canteens should collaborate to contribute in ensuring that appropriate food hygiene practices are maintained in the society for the benefit of all.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of Study
The need to strengthen food safety and hygiene practices is a fundamental public health concern for all for the prevention of food borne diseases. World Health Organization (WHO) (1999) defines food as any substance, whether processed, semi processed or raw which is intended for human consumption. In a similar view, Akande (2002) defines food as any substance, prepared and eaten by people to take care of their physiological needs. Also, Ohiokpehai (2004) describes food as anything liquid or solid material which when taken and digested can provide the body with nourishment. It can be deduced form the above definitions that food is any substance eaten that can provide the body with its needs. It follows that food as a basic human need must be wholesome and safe. This is because good and adequate food promotes good health while poor and adulterated food substances are potential hazards to human health.
Food adulteration is a major public health problem which affects the quality of life of people specially community children. Food borne diseases are serious health hazards and major causes of morbidity and mortality in the developing countries of which Nigeria is one. Bhat (2005) reveals that incidence of food borne diseases outbreak is due to micro-organisms like salmonella, campylobacter jejuni or Norwalk virus. For instance, microbiological examination of various food items served by the canteens in various parts of India indicated the presence of micro-organisms. According to Ankleshwaris (1999) food adulteration here refers to mixing of food with other substances that may be harmful to human consumption by canteens.
Food vending helps in providing essential services to many of the urban inhabitants such as site workers, labourers, street dwellers, market traders as well as community children. Canteens according to Lathan (1997) are small scale entrepreneurs normally seen in a simple set up facilities or stalls in public places in order to provide quick and cheap services to the people. The canteens operate both in urban and rural communities, where they set-up their stalls adjacent to the communities or operate under a nearby tree. They provide different food varieties like rice, beans, okpa, agidi, ice cream, snacks among others. People who patronize such foods are more interested in their convenience than their safety and hygiene.
Food vending is increasingly becoming popular perhaps due to some vital roles it plays such as providing of quick and cheap food services to the people as well as creating employment opportunities for women. Ohiokpehai, (2004) while acknowledging the vital role played by canteens to the city dwellers observes that such foods can pose significant health hazards to the people due to the vendors lack of food hygiene practices.
Liu (2007) describes hygiene as a science that is concerned with environmental cleanliness of an individual or group or organization members to maintain healthy living. In this study hygiene is seen as all efforts towards ensuring good surrounding in order to prevent the occurrence of diseases or other health hazards. Thus hygiene entails keeping once environment to avoid the ill-health of disease for a healthy living in the society. Muinde (2005) observes that food vending plays important role in the cities and towns of many developing countries in meeting the demands of the city dwellers. Millions of people are fed daily with a wide range of foods that are relatively cheap and easily accessible regardless of the status of the food they eat form the vendors.
Vendors are not regulated by the local council health authorities, thus they operate without any monitoring of what they prepare and how they prepare them. Yet, they are found operating in the primary community premises where community children fall the victim of buying the food. Simoons (2006) assert that community children exposed to poor and unhygienic diets not only experience poor health but also retarded academic development. Simoons also states that body first uses energy to maintain critical organs functioning. It appears that poor families spend proportionately more of their income buying food from canteens. Unfortunately, these cheaper foods are generally the least nutritious. They are often fattyoily foods, high in salt and sugar and un-hygienically prepared. The food stuffs as a result of poor storage are contaminated and vending of such food to community children and other people endangers their health.
Agba (1994) observes that unhygienic practices by canteens expose children to diseases like vomiting, abdominal pains, diarrhea and other forms of health risks in the environment. Although community children enjoy food from these canteens, in many cases the food is of poor quality and it poses a serious health risk to the community children. Canteens provide the bulk of these children snacks, breakfast, lunches in many communities in Bida, Niger State. Agba (1994) states that some of the primary communities are located at far away from the children homes, hence most of them leave early for community without breakfast, thus they depend most of the time on foods sold around the premises by these vendors. Agba also observes that the canteens use dirty water to wash their plates and pour out dirty water around their surroundings. Some of them equally appear in dirty clothes, and unkept hair.
The unhygienic practices in the preparation, cooking, serving and storage of food often lead to the contamination of food with pathogens and substances, that result in infection and diseases in the person that eats the food especially community children. These unhygienic practices by canteens in the communities expose the pupils who eat their food to the risk of contamination of diseases like diarrhea, constipation among others. As a result, the researcher is interested in finding out strategies needed to enhance the hygiene practices of canteens in Bida, Niger State of Enugu State.
1.2 Statement of the problem
The practices of canteens especially within public primary communities premises generate a lot of concern to the general public. Children are ignorant of unhygienic food and may not be concerned about the health hazard of what they buy and eat in the communities. Many canteens in public primary communities are found not keeping adequate hygiene practices not only in their preparation but in the exhibition of their products for sale.
From the researcher’s observation and experience some of them have unkept hairs, dirty foot wears, spit and cough without the use of hand kerchief, leave foods open to flies and use dirty water to wash utensil in unhygienic environment. The above condition often leads to food contamination with substances that may result to infection and diseases among the community children. These activities of the canteens call for urgent actions in the community environment. The problem of this study therefore put in a question form is: What are the strategies to be adopted to improve the hygiene practices of canteens in Bida, Niger State?
1.3 Objective of Study
The purpose of this study was to identify the strategies for enhancing the hygiene practices needed by canteens in public primary communities in Nsukika Community.
Specifically, this study is designed to:
- identify food hygiene practices needed by good vendors to operate in Bida, Niger State.
- identify personal hygiene practices needed by canteens to operate in public primary community in Bida, Niger State.
- identify environmental hygiene practices needed by canteens to operate in Bida, Niger State.
- suggest strategies that should be adopted in enhancing the hygiene practices needed by canteens in Bida, Niger State.
1.4 Significance of the study
The theoretical significant of this study is anchored on social learning and Humoral theory of food and culture respectively. The principles of the two theories place emphasis on acquisition of knowledge and behaviour change through interaction with the environment. The practical significance of the study would be of immense benefits to the following Ministry of Health, canteens, parents, community children, researchers and the entire society. The findings would enable the Health Ministry authorities to be aware and appreciate the roles and problems of canteens in the public primary communities. This will help them to come up with good policy intervention to promote food safety measures in the various community environments where the canteens operate.
The findings would help canteens to adopt good hygiene practices that will prevent food contamination. It would provide them with the skills to ensure proper food hygiene as well as the need for them to maintain their personal and environmental cleanliness where they cell their products.
The parents who give their children pocket money would also benefit. This will assure them of the quality and safe food sold to their children in the communities. The children themselves would benefit from the findings. They would be offered good quality and safe food by the vendors in the communities. The good quality food would help to improve their nutritional status.
Researchers interested in other areas of food research would find the findings as useful background knowledge in the area. The findings would benefit the entire society. This would go a long way in reducing the outbreak of food poisoning. It would enable the people to appreciate the need for food safety through adopting proper food preparation under better hygienic conditions in their homes.
1.5 Scope of the study
This study covered the canteens in Bida, Niger State. The study examined the hygiene practices of canteens with particular interest on food hygiene practices, personal hygiene practices and environmental hygiene practices of canteens in Bida, Niger State. The study also examined strategies for food hygiene practices that canteens would adopt to enhance the hygiene practices in Bida, Niger State.
1.6 Research questions
The following research questions guided the study:
- What are the food hygiene practices needed by canteens to operate in Bida, Niger State?
- What are the personal hygiene practices needed by canteens to operate in public primacy communities in Bida, Niger State?
- What are the environmental hygiene practices needed by canteens to operate in Bida, Niger State?
- What other strategies are needed to enhance the hygiene practices of canteens in Bida, Niger State?
1.7 Hypothesis
There is no significant difference between the mean rating of canteens and residentss with regard to strategies for enhancing hygiene practices of canteens in Bida, Niger State.
1.8 Definition of Terms
Hygiene:
conditions or practices conducive to maintaining health and preventing disease, especially through cleanliness.
Canteen:
A place in a factory, community, town or communities where meals are provided, usually quite cheaply
Food Services:
The food service encompasses any establishment that serves food to people outside their home.
Community:
A group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common.