LILONGWE UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE AND NATURAL RESOURCES

STREET AND FAST FOODS PRACTICES; ISSUES OF SOURCING, PREPARATION,

SAFETY AND CONSUMER PERCEPTIONS AROUND MITUNDU AREA

TO: DR. MANANI

FROM: GROUP 7
NAME REGISTRATION NUMBER
YAMIKANI MBEWE 200101357
PRECIOUS SIYAMANDA 190100668
DAINA KAMPEZA 190100673
ELIAS NKHONJERA 200101382
THOMAS SHABANIE 190100682

PROGRAMME: BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

COURSE NAME: FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH PROJECT 1
COURSE CODE: FST 310
STREET AND FAST FOODS PRACTICES; ISSUES OF SOURCING, PREPARATION,
SAFETY AND CONSUMER PERCEPTIONS AROUND MITUNDU AREA
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND
Street foods describe a wide range of ready to eat foods and beverages sold and sometimes
prepared in public places notably streets (Winarno, 1986). Street foods come with many
advantages, they are usually cheap, are easily available at odd times and places and are often the
only business catering to the working poor urban population (Global Forum on food Security and
Nutrition, 2011). However, safety and health hazards associated with street foods is a major
concern within the street foods supply chain. Street foods are handled, prepared and sold under
unhygienic conditions with limited access of safe water, sanitary services, or garbage facilities.
Street foods have many shortcomings, the main ones being the anarchic occupation and
unsanitary conditions of preparation and sale places, but also and above all, the problem of the
sanitary quality of food due to non-compliance or ignorance of hygiene rules when preparing and
selling food (Yasmeen, 2001; Barro et al., 2002a, 2002b). Several studies on street foods and
those in canteens have revealed the presence of viruses (hepatitis A virus, rotavirus, norovirus)
and pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Shigella species, Salmonella species,
Staphylococ- cus aureus, Streptococcus species, Vibrio cholerae, Bacillus cereus,
Campylobacter species, Yersinia enterocolitica, Clostridium perfringens and Listeria
monocytogenes at worrying numbers (King et al., 2000; El-Scherbeeny et al., 1985a, 1985b;
Dawson & Canet, 1991) which reduce the microbial quality and increasing the foodborne
disease risk (King et al., 2000; Barro et al., 2002a; Cardinale et al., 2005). street foods can be found in
streets of schools and hospitals, and markets. Some are cooked and sold on the streets while done are cooked in homes and sold on the streets.

Fast foods is the term given to foods that are prepared and served very quickly which mainly
refers to food sold in a restaurants or store with pre-heated or pre-cooked ingredients, and served
to the customers in a packaged form for take-out or take away. (Obeagu, 2018). The dependence
on fast foods is growing as they present the following importance: save time of consumers, they
are easily accessed as they are found everywhere, cheap alternatives and also offer various
choices. While fast foods offer instant benefits to consumers, they present negatives impacts
such as they are unhealthier and uneconomic for families, the destruction of family gatherings
among others.(Obeagu, 2018).The main concern lies in risks that they pose on the health of the
consumers due to food borne diseases. The food diseases include; diarrhea, vomiting,
dehydration etc(CDC, 2019)

Sourcing of raw materials is a critical factor in safety of street foods. Vendors often purchase
their ingredients from local markets, and the quality and safety of these ingredients can vary
greatly. Some vendors use low quality ingredients which hinder food safety (Nakamura, 2004)
Preparations of street food and fast foods can also pose safety hazard. Vendors and food handlers
mostly prepare in outdoor environments that may not have adequate sanitation facilities. They
use utensils and cooking equipment that are not properly cleaned where by increasing the risk of
cross contamination. In addition they are not cooked in proper temperature which can lead to the
growth of harmful bacteria (Hossain, 2017)
Consumer conceptions also play a role in the safety of street foods. Consumers may not the
aware of the potential risks associated consuming with the street foods and fast foods and may
not take appropriate precautions to ensure the safety of the food they are eating. They may also
be likely to consume street foods and fast foods that are sold by vendors they are familiar with,
regardless of the quality or safety of the food. (Mensah, 2016)Overall to ensure the safety of
street foods and fast food require a comprehensive approach that addresses sourcing, preparation
and consumer conceptions.
Majority of the consumers believe that fast foods have inadequate nutritional values, another set
of results indicates young consumers are very particular about nutritional value and hygiene
factor of fast food outlets. Most consumers (80%) consumed street foods because of its likeable
taste whereas variety and reasonable price where almost equal in preference 31% and 28%
consumers respectively (Osali T.M 2011)

1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT

The unhygienic practices in food preparation areas especially within public schools and Mitundu
community generate a lot of concern to the general public. When food is prepared, contamination
mainly comes from the people (food handlers), utensils used in handling the food and from
food's environment, when this food is consumed it may lead to food poisoning and foodborne
diseases. Students and the surrounding people are not aware of the practices followed to prevent
hazards in these preparation areas to ensure that food is safe and suitable for consumption.
Despite the popularity and the convenience of fast foods and street foods around Mitundu area
they is an increase of concerns about the safety and hygienic practices of the vendors and
restaurants the lack of proper food handling and storage practices and adequate tanning of
workers and vendors where by leading to out breaks of food borne illness an health hazards to
consumers this poses a significant health risk and undermines the trust in the food industry.
Therefore the investigation will be based on current street foods and fast foods safety in
identifying to factors that contribute to the risk of contamination and illness, and propose
interventions to improve the quality and safety of the food sources.
Estimates of WHO the burden of foodborne diseases each year worldwide unsafe food causes
6000 milling cases of foodborne and 420000 deaths. These problems arises because of unsafe
food, improper handling of food, unattractive or unhygienic preparation area or an cleaned and
dirty of cooking utensils and it has been observed that food handlers leave their hair uncovered ,
inadequate washing of hands ,dirty foot wears, keeping finger nails long, coughing without the
use of handkerchief, leaving food un covered ,using dirty water for cooking, cross
contamination, cooking food less the normal temperatures which leads to food poisoning around
Mitundu area this activities above call for actions in Mitundu to avoid critical problems.

1.3 JUSTIFICATION OF THE STUDY

The study will bring insight into the state of the community’s hygienic condition, importance of
observing hygienic practices, effects of not observing the hygienic practices and how best food
can be served. The research will additionally increase the knowledge in both conditions of the
service and the type of the food to be served. The analysis of this project will provide vital
information on the popular perception towards the food bought by the community including
students. Furthermore, the study will be useful on the evaluation and regulation of the food
hygienic practices and proper eating habits in promoting safe, effective and affordable product to
all.
Street foods and fast foods have been associated with public health concerns, including
foodborne disease, obesity and chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. Therefore,
studying street food and fast food can help identify potential risks and provide insights on how to
mitigate them. In addition, street food and fast food are often closely tied to a community’s
culture and identity. Studying these foods can help shed light on the history, traditions and social
significance of the food and its role in society (Gutierrez et al.,2017). Street food and fast food
are significant contributors to the economy, both in developed and developing countries. And
also street food and fast food have evolved over time and continue to inspire culinary innovation.
Studying these foods can help identify new trends, flavors and culinary techniques that can be
applied in various food industries (Elliott et al.,2017).

STUDY OBJECTIVE
Main objective
  To analyze safety of street and fast foods in souring, preparation and
consumer perception.

Specific objectives
 To assess the environment where raw materials are sourced from the market
to the consumer.
 To examine safety and hygiene condition in the fast preparation area and food
handlers
 To Analyze on what people think about the safety of hygiene and street foods

STUDY QUESTIONS
 Is the food environment where raw materials are sauced safe?
 Is there any safety measures taken in the preparation area?
 What is the perception of the consumers’ in-terms of safety and hygiene of streets and
fast foods around Mitundu?
REFERENCES
Elliot, v., Thomas, s., & Ogden, J. (2017). Street food and food safety: A global perspective, critical Public
Health, 27(2),142-157.
Gutierrez, R., Akintoye, V.O., & Ng, k. W. (2017). Street food culture, economy,creativity, and
entrepreneurship: a review of the global literature. Journal of Ethnic Foods, 4(4), 219-226,
(n.d.).

Hossain, M. M. (2017). street food vending and its impact on cleanliness and hygiene of Dhaka city.
Journal of food protection, 675-681.

Mensah, L. D. (2016). Perceptions and practices of street food vendors towards food safety in kumasi.
GHANA.

Nakamura, S. T. (2004). Safety of street foods in developing countries: a review of the literature. Food
Science and Technology Research.