Food Protection Trends - January/February 2020 - 41

with microbes that cause infections and spoilage, since meat
is an ideal medium for growth of most microorganisms
because of its high nutritive value (29). Post-slaughter
handling of meat is associated with potential health risks to
consumers because of the possibility of contamination of
meat by pathogens (1). Foodborne diseases are caused by
biological and chemical hazards, which can contaminate food
at several points during production and preparation process
(6). Incidence of foodborne diseases is reduced if strict food
protection measures are in place from primary production to
the consumer. Food workers have been implicated in the spread
of foodborne diseases (33). Also, Campos et al. (16) indicated
that food handlers are a major cause of food contamination.
Foodborne disease outbreaks reported in the United States,
for instance, were often associated with mishandling, with
79% from commercial or institutional establishments and
20% from homes (21). Another report indicated the presence
of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus on the hands of
food handlers (26), while multi-drug resistant Staphylococcus
aureus has been isolated from meat being sold for human
consumption (35). Furthermore, most meats produced in
Ghana are contaminated with foodborne pathogens, and thus
may be a source of foodborne infections (4, 5, 8, 11, 13, 22).
Despite the fact that attempts are made in most abattoirs to
follow regulations set to protect consumer health, the problem
of meat hygiene and safety due to handling and processing of
meat remains a challenge (28). In the face of numerous efforts
by stakeholders to ensure meat safety in the Tamale Metropolis,
the incidence of foodborne illnesses is still high; hence there is
a need to identify specific knowledge gaps among meat sellers
in the Metropolis to ensure consumer health and safety, since
food handlers are integral to the improvement of food safety and
prevention of foodborne illnesses. This study was conducted to
assess the knowledge and practices of meat safety by meat sellers
in the Tamale metropolis.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Study area
The study was conducted in the Tamale Metropolis in the
Northern Region of Ghana, the only Metropolis in the five
regions of the North. Tamale is the Metropolitan capital city
and is also the capital of the Northern Region. It is located
in the central part of the Region and shares boundaries with
the Sagnarigu District to the west and north, Mion District
to the east, East Gonja to the south and Central Gonja to the
southwest (19). Geographically, the Metropolis lies between
latitude 9° 16 and 9° 34 North and longitudes 0° 36 and 0° 57
West (19). The population of Tamale Metropolis, according
to the 2010 Population and Housing Census, is 371,351 and
the Metropolis is entirely urban (19).
Study design and questionnaire administration
A survey was conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire (provided as supplementary data) to obtain data on

meat sellers' knowledge, attitudes and practices of safe meat
handling in meat establishments in the Tamale Metropolis.
Meat sellers (respondents), as the term is used in this study,
refers to street and open market meat vendors who sell
only fresh raw meats. Meat all over Ghana is mainly sold in
streets and open markets. Meats are mostly sold fresh and
warm; that is, as soon as the animal has been slaughtered and
dressed, it goes directly to the market for sale without chilling
or exposure to a cold chain. Simple random and purposive
sampling techniques were used to select the locations and
respondents, respectively, in the Tamale metropolis. Simple
random sampling was used to select eight different locations
(names withheld) where meat is sold in the Metropolis.
Purposive sampling was used to select 100 meat sellers, who
were respondents who willingly agreed to answer the questionnaire when they were approached. The questionnaires
used were developed according to comprehensive food safety
literature reviews. The questionnaire was divided into four
sections: demographic characteristics, knowledge of meat
safety, meat hygiene practices and attitudes toward meat
hygiene by meat sellers.
Ethics
The purpose of the study was first explained to the participants, and those who agreed to participate were interviewed. The confidentiality of each respondent's answers
was guaranteed.
Data analysis
Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social
Sciences version 20 (IBM SPSS, ver. 20, Armonk, NY). Chi
Square tests (χ2) were used to determine the relationships
between socio-demographic characteristics of the meat
sellers and their knowledge, attitudes and hygiene practice
levels. Statistical significance was assessed using P-values,
with results being considered significant if P ≤ 0.05. Analyzed
data were presented in the form of percentages in tables.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Socio-demographic characteristics of respondents
Safe meat handling, knowledge and hygiene practices by
meat handlers are key to the overall safety and quality of food
delivered to man. The findings of this study will contribute
toward the need to improve food/meat safety in Ghana.
Demographic characteristics of the respondents are shown
in Table 1. The results indicate that all the meat sellers were
males and the majority were 18-30 years (37%) or 31-45
years (46%) old, meaning that the majority of the meat
sellers were relatively young. This agrees with the findings
of Mahaboubil-Haq and Adzitey (27), Adzitey et al. (9),
Sulleyman et al. (31), Jianu and Golet (25) and Adesokan
and Raji (3), who reported that most of those involved in
meat processing are males rather than females, in contrast
to other food processing ventures, because butchering

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