Identification of food safety culture barriers and measuring impact of training for implementing effective change of FSMA in Honduras and Panama: A mixed-methods approach

Food borne illnesses in the U.S. represent a major public health burden which is mostly preventable. The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), signed into law in 2011, seeks to ensure the safety of the U.S. food supply by shifting the focus from responding to contamination to preventing it. This includes implementing regulations for fruit and vegetable producers. The purpose of this study is twofold. First, identify food safety culture barriers that fruit and vegetable plant workers face to an effective implementation of the FSMA regulations; second measure the impact of an educational training workshop on their attitudes, perceptions, and knowledge, in implementing the FSMA regulations into their production systems. There were two phases of the study: (1) Qualitative: Conduct focus groups to identify needs for training, (2) Quantitative: design/deliver an intervention training and evaluate the effectiveness of the training in changing attitudes, perceptions, and knowledge of participants about both food safety culture and the FSMA regulations. This study is beneficial to fruit and vegetable export plants in Honduras and Panama to improve their food safety culture and contribute to overall food safety locally and for export to ensure food safety in the U.S. supply chain.