Food Protection Trends - September/October 2021 - 460

concern about food safety due to being a vegetarian. Additional
research should explore the food safety perceptions
and behaviors of consumers following plant-based diets (e.g.,
vegetarians and vegans).
In pandemics or times of crisis, it is essential to have a clear
and consistent source to provide information surrounding
food safety and sanitation practices, including sanitation of
food packaging, as well as washing of produce. A trusted,
reliable source can help to reduce mixed messages and the
resulting food safety behaviors linked to adverse health
outcomes (19, 30). Effective risk communication about food
safety in emergencies and times of crisis could help to limit
the risk of illnesses, as well as reduce unnecessary behaviors
(e.g., excessive cleaning) that can result in anxiety, mental
fatigue, or accidental poisonings. For example, in the United
States, information about COVID-19 and food safety risks
and implications was communicated rapidly by university
extension offices (21). In Canada, the role of food safety
extension and outreach with consumers is primarily the
responsibility of local, provincial, and federal government
agencies. Our results suggest that public health officials such
as local or provincial medical officers of health or the chief
public health officer of Canada would be best positioned
to conduct risk communication about food safety related
to COVID-19 and in future times of crisis or emergencies.
Possible platforms through which to communicate this
information to a wide audience include television, government
websites, and social media.
There are some limitations to this study. We used an online
recruitment approach and the study had a small sample
size; therefore, participants and their behaviors identified
in this study may not reflect those of the broader Canadian
population. Instead, the study highlights a range of insights
and experiences of Canadians during the early stages of
the COVID-19 pandemic. Only four Canadian provinces
were represented among participants, with most residing
in Ontario, and most participants were under the age of 40.
It would be beneficial to examine these behaviors among
Canadians in other provinces (e.g., with differing levels of
pandemic impacts and control measures) and in more older
adults to better compare food handling and hand hygiene
behaviors by these factors. For example, we identified
that older adults tended to discuss washing of produce in
substances other than water more than younger adults, which
may warrant investigation in a larger survey study. The small
sample size may have limited our ability to identify other
age- or gender-related differences or behavioral trends. We
only captured information on participants' age, gender, and
REFERENCES
1. Aiello, A. E., R. M. Coulborn, V. Perez, and
E. L. Larson. 2008. Effect of hand hygiene
on infectious disease risk in the community
setting: a meta-analysis. Am. J. Public Health
98:1372-1381.
2. Atkins, L., J. Francis, R. Islam, D. O'Connor,
A. Patey, N. Ivers, R. Foy, E. M. Duncan,
H. Colquhoun, J. M. Grimshaw, R. Lawton,
and S. Michie. 2017. A guide to using the
Theoretical Domains Framework of behaviour
change to investigate implementation
problems. Implement. Sci. 12:77.
460 Food Protection Trends September/October
3. Borrusso, P. A. and J. J. Quinlan. 2017.
Prevalence of pathogens and indicator
organisms in home kitchens and correlation
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conditions. J. Food Prot. 80:590-597.
location of residence; future studies could explore other
sociodemographic factors (e.g., income and education)
related to consumer safe food handling behaviors (31). It is
likely that the online, text-based nature of the focus groups
resulted in a shorter duration of each focus group. However,
the content amassed in online, text-based focus group
discussions has been found to result in comparable quality
of data as in-person focus groups (15, 24). Finally, only one
participant responded during the member checking process,
and we were not able to confirm agreement of the other
participants with our results interpretation.
Overall, participants have made several notable changes
to their hand hygiene and food handling behaviors during
the COVID-19 pandemic. The altered behaviors identified
as being the most ubiquitous among participants were hand
washing and sanitation practices, including washing of
produce using substances other than water alone, as well as
exercising greater caution when grocery shopping. However,
other behaviors, such as the stockpiling of perishable foods
and the creation of homemade hand sanitizers, were not
found to be pervasive. In general, there is a need for better
risk communication regarding food safety behaviors during
the COVID-19 pandemic and future times of crisis, because
concerns around mixed messaging were noted by participants
and identified through the reported behaviors. This need
for improved communication extends to routine food safety
practices not influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic,
because results have highlighted common behaviors that
are cause for concern (e.g., sensory checks to determine the
safety of perishable foods). It is vital to ensure that Canadians
have access to trusted and reliable sources of information to
inform their food safety and hand hygiene behaviors. Clear,
consistent messaging and regular reminders are necessary
to reinforce recommended behaviors. Findings from this
study can be used to inform future research concerning the
effectiveness of food safety and hand hygiene messaging both
during and outside times of crisis.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors thank all individuals that participated
in the focus groups. This study was funded by Ryerson
University's Faculty of Community Services as part of their
COVID-19 Rapid Response Research Fund. The salary of
R. Haas was partially funded by the University of Guelph.
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