KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICE OF FOOD HANDLERS TOWARDS FOOD SAFETY

Introduction: Food handlers play an important role in ensuring food safety throughout the chain of production, processing, storage and preparation of food.Good knowledge, positive attitude and good practice of food handlers are important for prevention of food borne diseases.Aim of work: To assess knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) personal and work-related factors associated with different KAP levels.Materials and Methods: A descriptive observational cross-sectional study was conducted from December 2016 to September 2017.It included all food handlers working at Mansoura data were collected using a questionnaire about demographic data, occupational history, food safety knowledge and attitude.Observational checklist was used to assess the workers practice.Results: Only one quarter of food handlers had good knowledge towards food safety and hygiene, on contrary, most of them had a good attitude level (61.0%) and a good hygienic practice level (59.0%).High KAP scores were noted among veterinarians and cooks.between knowledge and attitude (r = 0.78), and moderate positive correlation between knowledge and practice (r = 0.46).Conclusion: Limited number of food handlers had enough knowledge regarding food safety.Practice had a positive correlation with both gender, educational level and type of work.It should be mandatory for food handlers to undergo a supervised food safety training courses prior to renewal of their license to