MICROBIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF STREET VENDED FOOD DISPLAYED

OUTSIDE RAMON MAGSAYSAY MEMORIAL COLLEGES

A Thesis Proposal Presented

To The Faculty of Basic Education Program

RAMON MAGSAYSAY MEMORIAL COLLEGES

GENERAL SANTOS CITY

In Partial Fulfillment for the Requirement

In Research for Daily Life 2 (9:30 - 11:15 A.M.)

Proponents:

Alcaria, Rhearose B.

Balanon, Ylen Criz S.

Datahan, Janna Sophia R.

Yana, Angela Trisha Mae O.

SEPTEMBER 2022

Chapter 1
 PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING

Introduction

The cleanliness of street food is one of the most common issues. Since

personal hygiene and cleanliness would undoubtedly affect the food that they

serve, street food vendors are frequently questioned about these issues.

Although street food vendors prepare their dishes in a variety of methods, we can

never be certain if their workspace is clean. Keep in mind that street food is

frequently sold alongside the road, which means the food is typically exposed to

the elements. This research is essential because it will enable microbiological

examination to identify whether street food is safe to eat or not.

The demand for non-traditional services has accelerated due to the impact

of abrupt and unprecedented urban growth and an increase in the size of the

labor force. The informal sector's most successful and significant industry is the

street food trade, which has shed its image as a chaotic, working-class

enterprise. The sale of street food has grown to be a serious worry for everyone's

health. This is a result of the proliferation of roadside food vendors that are

insufficiently knowledgeable about fundamental food safety issues.

Microbiological contamination can be caused by the way food is prepared and

utensils used, as well as the time and temperature abuse of cooked foods (Indian

J Microbiol. 2011).
 As much as it's time and wallet friendly, consumption of street foods may

cause various nutritional issues. Street foods are often sold beside the road and

the usage of open stalls have eased the contamination done by bacterias and

other microorganisms. Development of other non- communicable diseases may

also heighten—mostly resulting in foodborne diseases in most cases such as

diarrhea, typhoid fever, cholera and food poisoning.

In this regard, the researchers are determined to assess the

microbiological quality and safety of street vended foods like ‘isaw’ and ‘kwek-

kwek’ sold in different vendors outside the campus of Ramon Magsaysay

Memorial Colleges.

Theoretical Framework

This study is anchored from the economic theory of International Trade and Food

Safety. Here, the term "food safety risks" refers to risks to human health from

agents and sources such as microbial pathogens (i.e., disease-causing bacteria,

viruses, parasites, and their toxins); residues from pesticides, food additives, and

growth hormones; environmental toxins like heavy metals (e.g., lead and

mercury); persistent organic pollutants (e.g., dioxin); and unconventional agents

like pr. The majority of scientists concur that hazards to food safety are minor in

comparison to many risks to human health, such as cancer and heart disease.

Foodborne pathogens like Campylobacter and Salmonella, which each cause

well over a million illnesses yearly in the United States, pose the largest dangers

to human health among food safety issues (Mead et al., 1999).

Significance of the Study

Definition of Terms

Microbiological Analysis - refers to an examination with the use of various

chemical related methods for the identification of microorganisms.

Street Vended Food - foods that are cooked and served on stalls beside

establishments, often near roads, and in public spaces.

 Chapter 2

Review of Related Literature and Studies

Literatures

To maintain food security, or to supply enough food for everyone in a

community, is one of the biggest issues in developing nations. Food safety,

though, is still a problem in these nations.It is believed that food-borne illnesses

affect more than 200 different disease types, occasionally posing long-term

health issues for susceptible populations like the elderly, pregnant women,

children, and individuals with impaired immune systems (Paudyal et al., 2017 ;

Loukieh et al., 2018; WHO, 2019).

Street food that is ready to eat (RTE) is regularly available, especially in big

cities. Street food makes up a sizable percentage of the meals of people in both

developed and developing countries. It is estimated that 2.5 billion people dine

on the streets each day in the world.Millions of "urban poor" families make their

living by selling food on the streets, which significantly boosts the economies of

these nations (Loukieh et al., 2018;Jaffee et al., 2019).

In big urban locations, you can find street food vendors practically

everywhere.The increased need for inexpensive, ready-to-eat foods and the

general poverty of the population are the main drivers of street food sales.There

are numerous unregulated informal marketplaces that operate without the bare
minimum of hygienic and sanitary standards (unknown to the domestic taxing

authority).In wealthy nations, the sale of RTE foods is constrained by standards

of sanitation and safety, but this is sometimes not the case in underdeveloped

nations. Foodborne infections are spread by issues including using untreated

water, having inadequate sanitation and personal hygiene, and using

contaminated utensils by street food sellers(Abrahale et al., 2018;Paudyal et al.,

2017;Schirone et al., 2018).

A poor water supply infrastructure has frequently been cited as a significant

barrier to the sale of RTE street food in poorer nations.Furthermore, food

exposure to dust, flies, and other insects that could carry diseases, as well as

poor sanitation, are significant concerns.Most street vendors are unaware of

these variables because to their lack of education and the lack of short-term

training efforts. This information has been documented in numerous research

linking the unsafe food handling practices of street vendors with their inadequate

hygiene.So, in some nations, outbreaks of foodborne infections have been linked

to street meals (Weststrate et al., 2019 ;Shiningeni et al., 2019;Abrahale et al.,

2018).

In the Philippines, you can eat on the street practically anywhere. Everywhere

they walk, people can see it outside of the school, the church, the park, and on

the side of the road.All Filipinos enjoy eating, especially when it is delicious and

economical. Filipinos prefer eating street cuisine because it is easily accessible

at all times and in all places. Everyone can eat as much street food as their

budget permits as long as they have the money because it doesn't cost

much.Street food is accessible to anyone. One of the popular dishes among

Filipinos is street food. When kids observe people eating street food outside, they

will want to join them and do the same. People who eat street food do so

because it is primarily very affordable and is available to them whenever and

wherever they are in the country. When a Filipino family is unable to cook meals

for everyone, they buy street food and everyone is happy since it is delicious and

ready to eat. Street food may also be found on the dinner or lunch table of a

Filipino family (Look Upgrade Corp 2019).

Many sellers that serve food on the street could use substandard ingredients.

They might work in settings with inadequate hygienic standards and be exposed

to inappropriate food preparation and handling methods. It's possible that they

may use leftover cooking oil. They don't wash their hands before handling food or

cooking it, nor do they use hairnets. It's possible that food, containers, and

utensils were improperly stored or exposed to dirt, smoke, or insects. These

practices put customers at danger by encouraging the growth and infection of

microorganisms.

The risk of germs and viruses rises as a result of street food vendors' spreading

trash and grime. Customers should be made aware that vendors of street food

lack a proper waste disposal system and commonly gather and put away trash
nearby, such as on sidewalks or street corners. While the municipal

administration cleans up some of these, others continue unchecked and

eventually turn into big disease-spreading hotspots in the neighborhood.

Because of the resulting bug and fly infestation, the risk of contamination in the

food that these vendors sell and that customers eat rises (Local Press 2020).

Studies

A study focusing on analytical evaluation of food safety knowledge and

practices of street food vending in the Philippines examines the discrepancy

between street food vendors' actions and knowledge about food safety in a

developing nation. Five criteria were used to assess the street sellers' knowledge

of food safety, which were taken from the literature. A gap between street food

vendors' behaviors and knowledge of food safety was discovered using a chi-

square goodness-of-fit test. Street food vendors have a high level of food safety

knowledge but low actual practice, as evidenced by the poor food handling

practices among street food vendors that also significantly deviate from the
established standards. This was discovered when mapping the food safety

knowledge of the street food vendors to their practices (Chua Tiu, et al., 2021).

The needs of the urban sector population in the area are largely met by

street vendors. This study aims to obtain an understanding of street vendors'

industry as well as their effect on the economy. This study's goal is to examine

how street entrepreneurs operate and how they contribute to employment,

income, reducing poverty, and sustainable living (Jamir, C., & Pongen, M., 2022)

In many parts of the world, the long-standing custom of eating out has

begun to take on new forms as street food culture. Due to the resignification of

the practice of eating out that has occurred with the introduction of food trucks,

street food is a pertinent social innovation (defined here as a reconfiguration of

an ordinary practice). Eating out (street food) in the past meant getting cheap

food fast as an afterthought to one's multiple daily duties. Nowadays, going out to

eat may also be a social occasion where people congregate to eat, converse,

and mingle. In Brazil's food hierarchy, vendors and food parks are advancing and

becoming events. A novel way to enjoy a meal and some downtime is at food

parks (Bispo, M. & Almeida, L., 2020).

According to a study concerning international tourists' attitude towards street

food in a local area, South East Asia is home to a wide variety of street foods,

and Thailand is no exception. Like other locations, Phuket provides a wide

variety of specialties to pick from. This might be used to draw tourists, but in

order to make the street food more appealing to visitors from abroad, a few
things need to be changed. Out of hygiene, service quality, affection, food

quality, contentment, and value, this study's survey of 294 foreign tourists found

that affection is the most significant predictor of tourists' behavioral intentions

toward street food in Phuket (Chavarria, et al., 2017).

For the majority of urban residents, street food is a significant source of

nourishment and food. However, there are numerous issues with the street food

industry. In order to discover which worries had the greatest impact on people's

decisions to consume or not, this study looked at how concerns about street food

varied across consumers and non-consumers. According to the Attitude

Behaviour Context Model, it was discovered that there was no difference in the

concerns about street food held by consumers and non-consumers. However, it

was discovered that sociodemographic factors were not effective predictors of

street food intake, raising the question of what causes one group to consume

and the other not. Concerns about the environment, food safety, and health, as

well as street food vendors' concerns, were effective predictors of street food

consumption. Environmental, food safety, and health worries discouraged non-

consumers, while vendor worries affected whether customers would continue to

use street food vendors' services (Hiamey, S. E. & Hiamey, G. A., 2018).

Through the provision of jobs, the availability of food at reasonable rates,

and the accessibility of a wide variety of food options that suit diverse social

communities and classes, street vending enterprises play economic and social

roles in developing countries. All ages of men and women work as street food

vendors and employ mobile, semi-mobile, or stationary carts. However, due to

the informal nature of the street food vending industry, regulatory agencies

frequently ignore it, leading to unwholesome behaviors. Microbial dangers,

environmental pollution, and chemical contamination are linked to inadequate

infrastructure, a lack of sanitation, and poor personal hygiene, all of which

increase the risk of foodborne illnesses and other health risks (Aadil et al., 2018).

Vendors need access to certified and audited facilities that can guarantee

food safety as well as hygiene training in order to prevent contamination of street

cuisine. Government should enact effective measures and hold training programs

for food safety. To assist street sellers with proper enforcement of public health

rules, active engagement between regulatory organizations and NGOs is

essential. In underdeveloped nations, using safe food handling techniques can

increase food quality and safety as well as the health of both food vendors and

customers (Rakha et al., 2018).