Evaluation of the Behavioral Changes Related to Food Hygiene and Safety During COVID-19 Outbreak

The aim of the present study was to investigate behavior changes related to food hygiene and safety during Covid-19 outbreak.

In this cross-sectional study, a digital questionnaire was used to collect the data. The questionnaire consisted of 36 questions in three sections: demographic characteristics, knowledge of food hygiene during the coronavirus epidemic, and food hygiene performance before and after Covid-19 outbreaks.

675 questionnaires were completed. The ways through which foods are washed and subsequently packed, before and after the Covid-19 outbreak, have changed significantly. It was revealed that the use of dishwashing liquid, sanitizing liquid, vinegar (p<0.001), and alcohol (p=0.03) has drastically increased for washing the fruits; salt and bleach are used for washing the vegetables (p<0.05), and dishwashing liquid, sanitizing liquid and alcohol for washing egg and packaged food (p<0.001) after the outbreak. Covid-19 caused 35.5% of the participants to avoid sweetmeat, 23.7% of them did not use takeaway foods, and 21.4% of them  eliminate nuts and seeds from their diet.

According to the results of this study, people's knowledge about coronavirus transmission and food disinfection is insufficient.  Given that people's knowledge about the mentioned cases can affect the choice of food groups and the quality of people's diet, introducing valid information sources and providing  necessary training to people in the community can lead to the correction of beliefs and behaviors regarding food hygiene during the Corona outbreak.