Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 204

PEER-REVIEWED ARTICLE
Food Protection Trends, Vol 41, No. 2, p. 204-215
Copyright© 2021, International Association for Food Protection
2900 100th Street, Suite 309, Des Moines, IA 50322-3855

Mitzchie Espedido and Ian Young*
School of Occupational and Public Health, Ryerson University,
350 Victoria St., Toronto, Ontario M5B 2K3, Canada

I Read It on Reddit: Food Safety Information-Seeking
Preferences and Practices of Young Adults Online
ABSTRACT
Young adults increasingly search online for healthrelated information, including information about food
safety. This cross-sectional study was conducted to
evaluate the food safety information-seeking preferences
and practices of young adults who use Reddit, a popular
community-based website. A questionnaire was developed,
guided by the technology acceptance model and theory of
planned behavior, and distributed online to young adults
(age 18 to 39 years) from October 2019 to January
2020. Predictors of participants' intentions to use Reddit
to search for advice about safe food handling in the
following 2 weeks were assessed in an ordinal regression
model. Eligible responses were obtained from 209
individuals. One-third (36%) of respondents had previously
searched for food safety information on Reddit, 88% of
whom adopted the advice they found. Self-reported food
handling practices were generally positive, but only 50%
of respondents owned a food thermometer. Respondents
were more likely to intend to search for food safety advice
on Reddit if they perceived the website to be useful and

credible, if they previously searched Reddit for food safety
information, and if they perceived safe food handling to be
unpleasant. Additional education and outreach strategies
targeting this website are warranted to ensure accurate
food safety advice is promoted online.

INTRODUCTION
Foodborne disease has a significant burden on morbidity
and mortality worldwide (15). Economic and societal
impacts from health care costs, lost productivity, and
other costs are also substantial (24). Sporadic cases of
foodborne illness are most likely attributed to improper
food preparation and handling practices in individuals'
home kitchens (21, 33). Previous research has found that
young adults do not follow several recommended safe food
handling practices at home, increasing their risk of acquiring
foodborne illness (5, 6, 34).
Young adults frequently use online communities such as
Reddit to search and browse for health-related information
(31). However, health information and advice disseminated
in online communities may contain misinformation and

*Author for correspondence: Phone: +1 416.979.5000, Ext. 557614; Fax: +1 416.979.5377; Email: iyoung@ryerson.ca

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Food Protection Trends March/April


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Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021

Presence of Listeria monocytogenes and Sanitation Controls in Cold-Smoked Salmon Facilities during FDA Inspections
Sensitivity of Planktonic Cells and Biofilm of Wild- Type and Pressure-Stressed Cronobacter sakazakii and Salmonella enterica Serovars to Sodium Hypochlorite
I Read It on Reddit: Food Safety Information-Seeking Preferences and Practices of Young Adults Online
Food Safety Knowledge and Self-Reported Practice among Campers in the United States
Consumer Handling of Whole Turkeys: Identification of Common Mishandling Practices
Ability of Whole-Genome Sequencing to Refine a Salmonella I 4,[5],12:i:- Cluster in New York State and Detect a Multistate Outbreak Linked to Raw Poultry
Beyond the Bio Nadia Narine
PDG Highlight Food Safety Assessment, Audit and Inspection Professional Development Group
Industry Products
Coming Events
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Cover1
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Cover2
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 177
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 178
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 179
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 180
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 181
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 182
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 183
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Presence of Listeria monocytogenes and Sanitation Controls in Cold-Smoked Salmon Facilities during FDA Inspections
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 185
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 186
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 187
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 188
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 189
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 190
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 191
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 192
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 193
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 194
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Sensitivity of Planktonic Cells and Biofilm of Wild- Type and Pressure-Stressed Cronobacter sakazakii and Salmonella enterica Serovars to Sodium Hypochlorite
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 196
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 197
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 198
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 199
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 200
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 201
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 202
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 203
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - I Read It on Reddit: Food Safety Information-Seeking Preferences and Practices of Young Adults Online
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 205
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 206
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 207
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 208
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 209
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 210
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 211
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 212
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 213
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 214
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 215
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Food Safety Knowledge and Self-Reported Practice among Campers in the United States
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 217
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 218
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 219
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 220
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 221
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 222
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 223
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 224
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 225
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 226
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 227
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 228
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 229
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 230
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 231
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Consumer Handling of Whole Turkeys: Identification of Common Mishandling Practices
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 233
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 234
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 235
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 236
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 237
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 238
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Ability of Whole-Genome Sequencing to Refine a Salmonella I 4,[5],12:i:- Cluster in New York State and Detect a Multistate Outbreak Linked to Raw Poultry
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 240
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 241
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 242
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 243
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 244
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 245
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 246
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 247
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Beyond the Bio Nadia Narine
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 249
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 250
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - PDG Highlight Food Safety Assessment, Audit and Inspection Professional Development Group
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 252
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 253
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 254
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 255
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Industry Products
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - 257
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Coming Events
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Cover3
Food Protection Trends - March/April 2021 - Cover4
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