Differences in household meat handling, storage, and consumption practices by educational level during Eid al-Adha in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study

Background During Eid al-Adha, large quantities of Qurbani meat are slaughtered, distributed, stored, and consumed within a short period, creating distinct household food safety challenges. This study aimed to describe household Qurbani meat handling practices, from slaughter to consumption, in Türkiye and to examine differences by educational level. Methods A cross-sectional survey of 218 Turkish adults was administered using non-probability snowball sampling during the weeks following Eid al-Adha, from 25 July to 25 August 2022. A structured, author-developed questionnaire assessed household meat handling, storage, and consumption practices. Associations between educational level (No degree, Undergraduate, or Graduate + Postgraduate) and food safety practices were examined using Pearson’s chi-square test, with a Monte Carlo exact procedure applied when expected cell counts were low. Effect sizes were determined using Cramér’s V, and p-values were adjusted with the Benjamini–Hochberg false discovery rate (FDR) procedure. All analyses were exploratory and unadjusted. Results Participants’ educational levels were undergraduate (42.2%), Graduate + Postgraduate (33.5%), and no degree (24.3%). After FDR correction, educational level was significantly associated with storage temperature, meat preparation before freezing, thawing and refreezing practices, the amount and timing of meat consumption, cross-contamination practices, and the method used to judge doneness and the preferred degree of doneness (q < 0.05). Higher educational attainment was associated with more frequent reporting of several recommended storage and hygiene practices, although this pattern was not consistent across all practices. Self-reported symptoms after meat consumption were uncommon and did not differ by educational level. Because the analyses were unadjusted bivariate comparisons, they do not imply causality. Conclusions Educational level was associated with several household meat handling, storage, and consumption practices during Eid al-Adha, though not all differences favored higher educational groups. These exploratory, unadjusted findings suggest that food safety communication before Eid al-Adha may support safer household meat-handling practices; future studies should evaluate the effects of such interventions on foodborne illness and food waste.