Food safety practices and associated factors among food vendors around selected university settings in Kampala, Uganda

Despite being critical for improving student nutrition, there is limited evidence of food safety practices among food vendors around university settings. This cross-sectional study assessed food safety practices and associated factors among 322 food handlers using a modified Poisson regression model. We found out that 53.1% (171/326) of the food vendors exhibited poor food safety practices. Food handlers with a tertiary education (PR = 0.47, 95% CI: 0.34-0.98) and those having a valid food handlers license (PR = 0.47, 95% CI: 0.37 -0.61) were less likely to exhibit poor food safety practices. Food handlers working in a food establishment with adequate wholesome water (PR = 1.74, 95% CI: 1.16 - 2.60), agreeing that it is safe to leave food out of the refrigerator for more than 2 h (PR = 1.37, 95% CI 1.07-1.77) and disagreeing to a food handler using the same towel to clean various places (PR = 1.60, 95% CI: 1.14 - 2.23) predicted poor food safety practices. Factors associated with poor food safety practices included low levels of formal education, working in unlicensed food premises, and limited access to safe drinking water. There is an urgent need for comprehensive food safety training programs and stricter enforcement of food safety regulations in educational settings to improve food-handling practices.