Food Literacy, Diet Quality, and Sustainable Nutrition Behaviors Among Institutional Food Service Production and Support Staff: A Cross-Sectional Study

Institutions and organisations providing institutional food services are important in ensuring sustainability throughout the food supply chain and promoting sustainable and healthy eating among consumers. This study evaluated the relationships between food literacy, sustainable and healthy eating behaviors, and diet quality of institutional food service staff. The participants in the study were 173 volunteer staff (cooks, assistant cooks, waiters, dishwashers, and cleaners) aged 19-64 working in kitchens and dining halls affiliated with a university in Ankara (Türkiye). Socio-demographic information, the Sustainable and Healthy Eating (SHE) Behaviors Scale, the Self- Perceived Food Literacy (SPFL) Scale and a 24-hour dietary recall were collected through face-to-face method questionnaire administration. The quality of the diet was evaluated via the Healthy Eating Index-2020 (HEI-2020), derived from 24-hour dietary recall data. A moderate positive association existed between the total score on the SHE Behavior Scale and the total score on the SPFL Scale (r: 0.584, p<0.001). Weak positive correlation was found between the total SPFL and the total HEI-2020 scores (r: 0.160, p=0.036). The mean SPFL score for production personnel, including cooks and assistant cooks, exceeded that of support personnel, which includes waiters, dishwashers and cleaners (p=0.006). None of the participants had a good diet quality. Food literacy levels should be enhanced so that food service personnel may develop sustainable and healthy eating behaviors and improve the quality of their diets. Considering that the food service personnel participating in the study did not have an ideal diet, strategies to improve diet quality should be developed.