Assessments of good hygienic practice in food markets of Maputo, Mozambique and development of Food Safety Index

This study evaluated good hygienic practices (GHP) of food establishments in seven food markets in Maputo, Mozambique. A total of 191 food handlers were selected in this study. Information on   demographic characteristics and hygienic-sanitary conditions were obtained through semi structured interviews. The results revealed that the majority of food vendors in Maputo are females (92.7%) and all the selected vendors (100%) have not been trained in food handling. Vendors had no access to ablution facilities and in instances where they are available, they are few and located far away from the area where food is prepared. In terms of storage, 91.1% of the food handlers kept their cooked food unrefrigerated with only 9.9% of the vendors having freezers. Of the 191 establishments, 85.76% had Food Safety Index (FSI) between 0.15 and 0.18 scale, being therefore classified as bad. Good hygienic practices are therefore necessary to improve market conditions and consequently prevent foodborne diseases. The recommendations from this study is to properly conduct food safety training for all food vendors improving vending infrastructure  and implementing food safety inspections in the food markets of Maputo City.   Key words: Good hygienic practices, food handlers, food establishment.