Assessment of Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Food Safety and the Acceptance of Engineering Controls Among Street Food Handlers in Pagoh Higher Education Hub

Abstract

Street food is important in the daily life of academic communities within higher education hubs, such as the Pagoh Higher Education Hub. However, open-air food stalls can create health and hygiene risks. This study examined the food safety Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) of 52 street food vendors at a local night market and their acceptance of a new handwashing station design. Results of descriptive analysis showed very high food safety knowledge (mean = 4.57), positive attitudes (mean = 4.50), and good self-reported practices (mean = 4.69). However, observations at the stalls found several hygiene problems, including mixing raw and cooked food, handling money and food without washing hands, and a lack of proper handwashing facilities. Normality testing verified a significantly non-normal dataset (p < 0.001). The Spearman’s Rank Correlation results found very weak and non-significant relationships between knowledge, attitudes, and practices. To improve hygiene, a portable handwashing station was designed using SolidWorks and 3D-printed with Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) material. The design included two water tanks and a foot-pedal system to reduce hand contact. Vendors showed strong acceptance of the new design (mean = 4.49), demonstrating its potential to support better sanitation and safer food handling practices in street food markets.