Determinants to Compliance with Food Hygiene and Safety Practices Among Food Handlers in Boarding Schools in Embu County, Kenya

Background: Globally, and particularly in low- and middle-income countries, food-borne illnesses are a major public health concern. Mainly escalating the spread of food-borne illnesses are poor food hygiene practices. The purpose of this research was to assess the determinants of compliance with food hygiene and safety practices among food handlers in boarding schools in Embu County, Kenya. Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study design was utilized. A sample size of 196 study respondents was calculated by the use of the Magnani formula. Multistage sampling was applied to select the study participants. STATA version 17 was employed for data analysis. Results: In the multivariate analysis, factors associated with compliance with food hygiene and safety measures included sex(OR=2.2, 95% CI:1.1-4.6, p=0.028), age(OR=2.7, 95% CI:1.1-6.4, p=0.023), those who had previously had training on food safety(OR=2.0, 95% CI:1.0-4.0, p=0.046), monthly income(OR=3.0, 95% CI:1.2-7.3, p=0.015), and regular inspection by public health officials(OR=1.7, 95% CI:1.2-2.3, p=0.001. However, education level, marital status, and work experience were not associated with compliance with food hygiene and safety measures. Conclusion: In the multivariate analysis, education, marital status, and work experience were not associated with compliance with food hygiene and safety measures while the presence of previous training on food safety, presence of regular inspection of food premises, age, gender, and income level were found to be significantly associated with compliance with food hygiene and safety measures.