A survey by
the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has scored food vendors in Accra high on hygiene, although it raised grave concerns about food
handling that requires attention.
According to the study, most of the vendors did not undergo
medical screening, nor attended training courses on food hygiene and safety, or
have a valid food handling certificate.
The study was conducted in collaboration with the School of Public Health at the University of Ghana.
The provisional findings on the first sample of 1,700 street food
vendors as of April 2016 showed that the overall hygienic and safety conditions
under which street foods are prepared and sold in Accra are acceptable.
When assessed using a series of hygiene and safety indicators, the
quality of cooking tools got the highest score, followed by the quality of the
environment surrounding the selling points.
Uncovered organic waste was rarely found near food joints, but a
few selling points were surrounded by dirty ground.
According to the study, most of the vendors are located at a safe
distance from open air sewers and rubbish bins are available at most
sites.
The availability and quality of water and washing supplies on the
spot also had a positive score, despite the fact that most vendors rely on
water in buckets.
It was also found that while running water is rarely available at
food selling points, most of them have soap and/or hand sanitizers.
However, food vendors were found to rarely wear latex or plastic
gloves and did not cover their hair.
Most of the stalls are with no protective walls, although most of
them have a roof which they keep at a safe distance from trees that can
leak bird droppings and leaves.
The survey also found that most stands on which the foods are
displayed are often too close to the ground as well.
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