Risk perceptions, on-farm handling, and food safety practices among egg producing farmers in Thailand

Purpose Safe food from animal origins rely on preventive measures adopted at the farm level. However, farmers' awareness on the food safety risk is limited, affecting their on-farm activities. Thus, this study was conducted to assess and compare the farmers' perceptions on food safety issues and risks caused by the management and practices at layer farms. Design/methodology/approach Farmers from 143 farms certified by National Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) standard and 59 non-GAP farms were interviewed using a structured questionnaire for risk perception evaluation. Their level of perceived risk was compared using a scoring system. Findings The food safety hazards in eggs seem to be fairly recognized by both groups of farmers. GAP farmers demonstrated a higher risk of food safety incidences caused by inappropriate management and practices in farms than non-GAP farmers (p < 0.001). Although the results did not confirm the strong connection between risk perception and risk reduction behavior, these findings are beneficial to the food safety policy implementers to evaluate the critical issues for risk communication and for knowledge dissemination activities. The influence of other internal and external factors on farmers' food safety-related behavior should be further investigated. Research limitations/implications The impact limitation was identified due to the restriction of scope on a specific population and region. The target respondents did not cover all scales, especially the backyard and smallholder farmers nor other rearing systems, such as free-range productions. Originality/value The knowledge regarding the food safety practices by egg producing farmers in Thailand is limited. Notably, this study contributes to the literature in elucidating the preventive behavior of food handlers and all stakeholders in the Thai food supply chain. The implementations of food safety preventive measures by two groups of farmers, GAP-certified and non-GAP-certified farmers, will guide policymakers to intervene more successfully regarding the appropriate changes needed.

Automated summary

The study found that farmers have a certain awareness of the food safety hazards in eggs, with GAP farmers demonstrating a higher perceived risk of food safety incidents caused by inappropriate management and practices in farms compared to non-GAP farmers. The results are beneficial for evaluating critical issues in risk communication and knowledge dissemination activities in food safety policy implementation.