Consumer awareness of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAHS) contaminants in smoked fish and factors influencing smoked fish consumption in Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government area of Ogun State

Abstract

Fish has long been recognized as a healthy food which provides the body with excellent nutritional value. Due to its perishable nature, fish are commonly processed to increase its shelf life. In Nigeria, fish smoking is the commonest method of fish preservation which involves the use of traditional smoking kilns which are poorly constructed and lack mechanisms for heat control often resulting in the production of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in smoked fish. The study assessed consumers’ awareness of PAHs and other contaminants in smoked fish and determined the factors influencing smoked fish consumption among the respondents in the study area. A two-stage sampling technique was employed to select 105 respondents from the study area. Data was obtained with the aid of a well-structured questionnaire. The analytic techniques used for data analysis were descriptive statistics and binary logit regression model. Findings revealed that most of the respondents were females, married, having a mean age of 39 years with formal level education. Findings also revealed that most of the consumers had knowledge of the presence of PAHs in smoked fish which are injurious to health. Furthermore, age, gender, income, marital status, taste, household size, education and aroma were found to significantly influence smoked fish consumption at 1%, 5% and 10%, respectively. The study therefore concludes that awareness of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and other micro-organisms in smoked fish was low among the respondents in the study area.