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Food Safety Knowledge, Attitude and Practices Among Urban and Peri-Urban Consumers in Faisalabad District, Pakistan
Abstract
Food safety is an essential aspect of food security, which includes supply chain management and consumer-related concerns. In Pakistan, poor food safety poses a significant problem, harming consumer health, causing financial losses, and damaging the reputation of food businesses. The present study assesses consumers' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors regarding food safety in urban and peri-urban areas of Faisalabad. Data were gathered through a structured questionnaire, which was used to collect information from a total of 150 respondents, with 75 chosen from each of the urban and peri-urban areas of the Faisalabad district, employing a stratified random sampling technique. Descriptive statistics were employed for data analysis, and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to explore the relationships among food safety knowledge, attitudes, and practices of urban and peri-urban respondents in STATA (version 14). The findings revealed a significant knowledge gap regarding food safety among the surveyed consumers. This knowledge gap is reflected in consumers' attitudes and food safety practices. The results further revealed a negative but statistically significant relationship between knowledge and practices (H1 = -0.56, p < 0.05), a positive relationship between attitude and practices among the respondents (H2 = 0.79, p < 0.05), and a positive correlation between knowledge and attitude (H3 = 0.28, p < 0.05). To promote food safety, it is recommended to enhance knowledge on the subject while ensuring careful attention is given to each step in the process.
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DOI: 10.33687/ijae.013.01.5431
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