Abstract:
Vegetable farming is the most practiced urban agriculture in Ghana. A previous study of our
laboratory revealed poor microbial quality of, and presence of Salmonella on, leafy green vegetables
grown or sold in Accra, Ghana. The aims of this study were to determine agricultural practices of urban
vegetable farmers and the association between agricultural practices and microbial safety of vegetables
produced. A survey was conducted among 102 farmers from 12 farming areas who produced exotic
and indigenous leafy greens in Accra, Ghana to identify their farming practices. It was observed that
water from waste drains pumped into shallow wells was used for irrigation by 70% of the farmers.
Incompletely composted manure was commonly used (99%) in farming. Vegetables were usually
harvested using bare hands (96%) and knives (73%) and transported mainly in sacks (94%) to market
centers under non-refrigerated conditions. Over 60% of the farmers disagreed that the use of polluted
irrigation water can contaminate vegetables or make consumers sick. According to the seemingly
unrelated regression model, farmers with no formal education and less food safety knowledge and
had been planting on their current farmlands for several years were likely to produced vegetables with
higher fecal coliform and Enterococcus sp. counts compared to other farmers. Vegetables cultivated by
farmers who disagreed that the use of contaminated water can make consumers sick were associated
with the production of vegetables with high fecal coliform and Enterococcus sp. counts. Education and
improved agricultural and post-harvest handling practices should be encouraged among vegetable
producers in the area to improve food safety.
