ABSTRACT
Food safety has emerged as a paramount concern for both Vietnamese consumers and the government. However, limited data are available on food safety management systems in Viet Nam. This study identified significant gaps in good agricultural and hygienic practices along the fresh produce chain (farmers and traditional wholesalers/market sellers) in the region of Da Nang, Viet Nam. This was achieved through a survey on good agricultural and hygienic practices for farmers (n = 100) and sellers (n = 100), which researchers further supplemented by microbiological analysis for E. coli, Salmonella spp., and Listeria monocytogenes on leafy greens, water in contact with produce and contact surfaces (hands). The results indicated that 86.0 % of farmers and 54.0 % of sellers received food safety training in the last 3 years; and women dominated both vegetable cultivation but also trading. Farm-level deficiencies included inadequate handwashing practices, lack of documentation for manure application schedules, improper washing and drying of harvest tools, failure to keep containers elevated off the ground, improper storage of vegetables, and inadequate covering of containers, with respectively 34.0 %, 30.3 %, 12.1 %, 41.7 % and 7.9 % of farmers executing the practice as prescribed by the WHO/FAO '5 keys of growing safer fruits and vegetables'. As for sellers, the most dominant gaps (<50.0 % compliance) were the way of handwashing and the practice of keeping containers elevated off the ground before, during, and after harvesting. The microbiological analysis confirmed that, in a total of 36 fresh produce samples including mustard greens, cucumber, lettuce, and crown daisy, the number of samples positive for E. coli, Salmonella spp., and L. monocytogenes were 12, 2, and 10 respectively. Samples of hands and the irrigation water showed high contamination with E. coli. Based on identified gaps, risk communication tools were developed and distributed amongst farmers, sellers, and Da Nang food safety management authority (governmental organisation performing inspections in the traditional food markets). As intervention, two farmers and two sellers were trained in safe agricultural practices for the cultivation of fresh vegetables (managerial intervention) and instructed to use tap water as irrigation water instead of uncontrolled surface water (technological intervention). A post-assessment was conducted, including redoing the survey on good practices and microbiological analysis. The outcome of these interventions showed positive results in terms of good agricultural and hygienic practices resulting in improved hygiene levels and safety of the fresh produce. The findings from this research have the potential to provide a model for the development of a science-based risk management strategy in alternative food chains or geographic areas in emerging countries.