Table 2.

Responses of study participants to the food safety knowledge questions (n = 555)

Knowledge items	Correct		Wrong		Do not know
	n	%	n	%	n	%
Category 1. “Keep it clean” (84.8%)
Hands must be thoroughly washed and sanitized before preparing food to prevent food contamination (correct)	550	99.1	4	0.7	1	0.2
The facilities of food establishments must be clean, with a certificate evidencing the application of food safety standards (correct)	512	92.3	5	0.9	38	6.8
The use of sterilizers for fruits and vegetables above the permissible levels is safe to eliminate bacteria and microbes (wrong)	101	18.2	390	70.3	64	11.5
Vegetables and fruits can be sterilized by using only drinking water (wrong)	107	19.3	431	77.7	17	3.1
Category 2. Separate raw and cooked foods (90.8%)
Separate equipment such as cutting boards and utensils for raw meat should be used during the preparation process (correct)	521	93.9	13	2.3	21	3.8
Separating vegetables from animal products is important to prevent the transmission of germs (correct)	487	87.7	16	2.9	52	9.4
Category 3. Keep food at safe temperatures (40.9%)
Air humidity is a factor in the transmission of germs (wrong)	454	81.8	24	4.3	77	13.9
Frozen foods are thawed at room temperature (wrong)	372	67.0	156	28.1	27	4.9
Thawed meat can be re-frozen, i.e. re-transferred to the refrigerator (wrong)	36	6.5	502	90.5	17	3.1
Category 4. Use safe water and safe raw materials (85.2%)
The oils used must be healthy and free from any odors and impurities (correct)	546	98.4	1	0.2	8	1.4
Food must be from reliable sources and identified with a label (correct)	528	95.1	5	0.9	22	4.0
The plastic with the number one is only used once (correct)	345	62.2	38	6.8	172	31.0

Correct / wrong in the parentheses denotes the intended (correct) answer. n frequency, % percentage