How consumer confidence in food safety practices along the food supply chain determines food handling practices: Evidence from Ghana

The relationship between consumer confidence in food safety measures for vegetables sold in open markets and their use of safe food handling practices in the domestic environment was investigated for a set of 332 randomly sampled vegetable consumers within the suburbs of Accra, Ghana. More specifically, the confidence of consumers in twelve food safety measures employed by farmers, middlemen and traders was assessed, together with the frequency of treatment of vegetables with salt or vinegar and whether or not vegetables were stored in a hygienic and ventilated place. The results suggest that the level of consumer confidence in food safety measures along the value chain of vegetable production influences their food safety actions.