Food safety and dietary diversity in African urban cities: evidence from Ghana
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BMC Public Health
Abstract
Background Food safety is integral to food security and is increasingly becoming a significant concern in the urban
areas of Africa, which are rapidly growing in population. In the case of Ghana, many urban households depend on traditional
open-air markets for most of their food needs. However, these urban food markets also depend on domestic
food supply chains, which are prone to risks, including poor hygiene and sanitation and weather seasonality. Food
safety compliance has associated costs which increase the unit cost of food products. Thus, higher food price is a risk
factor to food availability and accessibility—fundamental pillars of food security.
Method We use food microbial data and food retail data from food market surveys in major cities in Ghana to assess
the safety of selected fresh food commodities and how retailers handle the food products they sell. Additionally,
based on a two-wave balanced panel household data, we used fixed effects Poisson and Correlated Random Effects
(CRE) Probit models to estimate the effect of weather seasonality on the incidence of diarrhoea and urban household
dietary diversity score (HDDS). A final sample of 609 households and 565 market respondents participated
in the study.
Results Our findings show that selected food samples tested positive for Staphylococcus aureus and E.coli and had
aflatoxin B1 levels above 5.0 ppb. Additionally, the household incidence of diarrhoea/vomiting, a proxy for food
safety status, is higher in the dry season. In the dry season, the household incidence of diarrhoea/vomiting increases
on average by a probability of 38% points compared to the rainy season. Regarding HDDS, the average HDDS is 7.3;
however, we did not find the effect of seasonality on HDDS to be significant.
Conclusions Although urban food availability and household dietary diversity are not challenges for many urban
households, food safety is a challenge in the major food markets in Ghanaian cities and is associated with weather
seasonality. Foods available in traditional open-air markets are not always safe for consumption, undermining households’
food security. Weak enforcement of food safety regulations contributes to the food safety challenges in Ghanaian
urban food markets.
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Research Article