CHAPTER I

PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

For over years, the food industry has become great in number. With this

occurrence, various businesses started to rise. One of these is the street food trade. It is an

activity that provides employment to many while selling fast, tasty and ready-to-eat foods

to people in the streets or other public places by a vendor and hawker, often in portable

stalls. Being low cost and convenient, street foods are preferred by almost 2.5 billion

people in the world to satisfy hunger (FAO, 2007). Moreover, it has contributed 40% to

the daily diet of urban consumers in developing countries (Steyn, PhD, 2011).

In the Philippines, street food is known as “pagkaing kalye” and has become a

part of the culture and lifestyle of Filipinos. Many street foods are connected with take-

out, snacks, dumplings, and fast food with various local flavours. In fact, everyone enjoys

it. They benefit from its healthy consumption as well as it grants one important aspect in

Filipino culture – finding pleasure in eating.

However, the informal nature of this sect of the economy sometimes allows poor

hygiene standards, making consumption of street food a potentially hazardous source of

nutrition. Since street foods are located along busy public areas such as pavements,

school premises, rail and bus stations, problems such as microbial contamination,

unhygienic practices, and lack of basic facilities like potable water are associated with it.
 Most handlers of street-vended foods as well are largely ignorant of basic food

safety issues. Thus, street foods are commonly exposed to dangerous abuses, often at all

stages of handling (VOCTA, 2010).

Although street vending provides source of nutrition, satisfaction and economic

livelihood, the unconsciousness of the community to the hidden dangers of street foods

urged the researcher to come up with this study to be able to dig deeper into the world of

street foods, unfold its practices and to somehow come up with possible solutions to the

problem.

This study is targeted primarily to street food vendors who serve as the vital

handlers of food before consumption; and secondarily to consumers who patronize and

live by the culture of street food vending. This study is not intended to be a technical

manual, but rather a discussion of issues relating to food safety and sanitation of street

foods.

Theoretical Framework

Globalization, industrialization, urbanization, food culture, and government

policy—all of these have contributed to the rapid growth of street food vending (FAO,

2007) Since street food vending is affected by economic, social, cultural, historical, and

legal factors, this research adopts a multi-disciplinary approach.

This study was premised on the concept of self-employment that can be sprung

from Karl Marx’s discussion of petty commodity production. According to Marx, petty
commodity production, which is pre-capitalist, has low division of labour and little

specialization. It was widespread in the transition from feudalism to capitalism (Scott

1979, p. 109-110).

Use of family workers makes this mode of production mere survivalist, intended

for social reproduction rather than capital accumulation. Two systems of production were

developed: the “bazaar economy” and the “firm-centered economy” (Geertz, 1963).

This dualistic model highlights the distinction between self-employment and

wage labour. The bazaar economy, in which a large proportion of the population of these

cities was engaged, was seen as a disadvantaged sector comprising low-income people.

This model also served as the basis of the informal-formal sector dualism by

Keith Hart. Hart first coined the term “informal sector” before it was popularized by the

International Labour Office Report on Kenya in 1972 (Harper, 1996).

Thereafter, the informal sector was characterized by the following: ease of entry,

reliance on indigenous resources, family ownership, small scale production, use of

labour-intensive technology, and facing competitive markets (ILO, 1991, p.4).

With the development of these informal sectors in the market, the street food trade

sprout. However, because of the continuous globalization, hygiene practices were set

aside. And so, diseases started to reign especially during the Middle Ages. This was

recognized as the Miasma Theory. In the miasma theory, it was believed that vapour,

mist, or ‘bad air’, originating from decomposing material (called miasmata) with its foul

smell, would enter the body and cause disease.

 The existence of the miasma theory was central to the new convention in Public

Health practice as scientists now began focusing their attention on environmental

problems as a cause of disease, instead of just focusing on personal health and infection.

The seeds of Public Health were being sown.

Unsanitary conditions in the home and in public spaces were finally being

connected to disease contamination.

INDEPENDENT VARIABLE DEPENDENT VARIABLE

Food Safety Street food

Hygienic Practices

The researcher therefore conceived that the food safety and hygienic practices of

the respondents can affect the street food in several aspects.

Conceptual Framework

Input Output Process

Street food vendors

Sanitation practices
Conduct a survey
Hygienic amenities through giving
questionnaires Safety and
Food handling methods
Instruct the Sanitation Level
Ways of food of Street Foods
respondents what
preparation
to do and how to
Adequate knowledge of answer
work

Attitude of respondents
 The constructs shown in the figures above illustrate the variables of the study

which are sanitation practices, hygienic amenities, and food handling methods done by

street food vendors. The second figure involves the process of the study comprising of

the actions that the researcher will perform in order to come up with the desired output

which is the food safety and sanitation level of street foods.

Hence, the figure above shows the direction flow of the study and the different

concepts about the study.

Statement of the Problem

The main problem of this study is to find out the health safety awareness and

cleanliness of street food vendors in handling street foods for the consumption of students

along private and public schools in Dumaguete City for the academic year 2013-2014.

Specifically, it seeks to find answers on the following questions:

1. What hygiene practices are exercised by street food vendors in preparing

food?

2. How often do street food vendors attend orientations and trainings regarding

proper food handling?

3. What health benefits do street foods offer?

4. What health risks do street foods give?

5. Why are street foods well-liked by students?

6. Are street foods really dirty?

7. How safe are street foods?

Hypothesis

To address the problems of this study, the following hypothesis were formulated:

Null Hypothesis

a. If consumers continuously eat street foods, then health illnesses may

occur.

b. If street foods will cause illnesses among students, it may be banned by

the school administration.

Alternative Hypothesis

a. If street food vendors undergo orientations and trainings on public health

safety and sanitation, then street food consumption will be much safer.

b. If street food vendors practice hygienic methods in preparing food,

foodborne-diseases may be minimal.

Assumptions

The following assumptions were formulated by the researcher for this study:

a. Policies on street food vending take into consideration the operational and

individual environment; diversity of food vendors; economic performance;

types of food sold; food hygiene; and of course the role of street food

vending in strengthening economic reliance.

 b. Street food vendors shall comply with all sanitary requirements at the

commissary to ensure safety among customers and to facilitate a healthy

business.

c. Consumers (students) have their preferred ways in choosing foods they

want to eat. These are affected by several factors.

d. The street food business will continuously boost its influence in the

society with the constant need of man to meet his basic needs especially

food.

Scope and Limitations

This research was conducted to find out the safety and sanitation of street foods

along private and public schools in Dumaguete City as perceived by street food vendors

in the academic year 2013-2014. It involves more or less 30% of the total population of

hawkers in the city. The aspects looked into were the food handling methods of vendors,

their sanitation practices, hygienic amenities, and ways of food preparation and adequate

knowledge of the work they are into.

The study is limited only to vendors located at public and private schools in the

city other than that, the sample is invalid. However, every member in the sample

population was given equal chance of inclusion in the sample. Correlation survey method

was also used with the use of a questionnaire to determine the links between the vendor

and the food being sold.

Significance of the study

As perceived by the researcher, the study proved very important to the following:

a) The vendors

The study will aid the vendors to correct their wrong practices in preparing

and handling food and enable them to strive to do the right one to guarantee

health safety.

b) The students and the public

The study will aid the learners as well as the people in the community to

be cautious of their choice of food in order to avoid any diseases that may weaken

their bodies and affect their daily activities.

c) The parents

This study will aid the parents in a way that they will be guided and aware

of the food their children are eating when they are away from home and so they

could monitor their children’s health from time to time.

d) The school

This study will aid the school by providing them ideas to detect poor

hygiene practices of its students so that it may seek ways to tackle the issue.
Definition of Terms

 Street food – any ready-to-eat meal or beverage found in the markets and public

places

 Hawker – a person who tries to sell things by calling at people’s homes or

standing in the street

 Commissary – shop that provides food and equipment

 Food safety – awareness of handling, preparing, and storing of food in ways that

prevent foodborne illness

 Hygienic practices – regular actions of cleanliness

 Foodborne illness – the sickness that people experience when they eat

contaminated food