Food safety knowledge and practice and food insecurity experience among households with under-five children in urban Injibara and rural Kessa Chewesa, Awi Zone, Ethiopia

Abstract

Unsafe food and drinking water mostly affect under-five children in food insecure households. This study assesses the food safety and water and sanitation knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of mothers along with household food security status in an urban and rural setting in Awi zone, Ethiopia. Questionnaire-based data was collected on socio-demographics, food handling, personal hygiene, water and other sanitation issues from randomly selected 238 mothers in both settings. Household food security status was also assessed. Data was analyzed by using SPSS and results were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics and multiple regression analysis was applied to determine the influence of certain socio-economic variables on household food security status, food safety, water sanitation and hygiene KAPs. Food insecurity among urban and rural households was 64% and 89%, respectively. Knowledge, positive attitude and appropriate practice in food handling was poor (<60%) in urban as well as rural households considered in this study. Similarly average KAP in personal hygiene was also poor (<60%). About 82% of urban respondents had good practice of washing hands with appropriate detergents, though they did not perform this during the key moments of washing hands. Average KAP in water sanitation was also generally poor (60%) although a large proportion of urban respondents treated water for safety using different methods (96%) and did not practice open defaecation (86%). This study showed that respondents’ KAP on food and water safety was unsatisfactory. Thus, under-five children who were fed with home-prepared complementary foods were particularly predisposed to food and water-borne diseases.