1.
Perception of risk, food
shopping, and hygienic
practices in Arab countries
during a pandemic
Dima Faour-Klingbeil, Ph.D.
Principal Consultant | DFK for Safe Food Environment
Dima Faour-Klingbeil, , Tareq M. Osaili , Anas A. Al-Nabulsi , Monia Jemni, Ewen C.D. Todd
The public perception of food and non-food related risks of infection and trust in the risk communication
during COVID-19 crisis: A study on selected countries from the Arab region
IAFP 2021 Annual Meeting - July 18-21, 2021

2.
THE GLOBAL IMPACT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC
179 075 604
Cases of COVID-19
3 876 675
deaths
All 22 Arab League
members are now
reporting COVID-
19 cases
The numbers continue
to rise and have
doubled since the last
report on 30 April.
WHO’s Situation Report Source: www.ecdc.europa.eu; Arab Center Washington DC

3.
All Arab countries face
difficulties in responding
to the pandemic
“The COVID-
19 pandemic
has exposed
fault lines,
fissures and
fragilities in
societies and
economies
around the
world ”
A.Guterres
(Secretary-General
of the United
Nations)

4.
If everyone else on the
Titanic is running for the
lifeboats, you’re going to
run too, regardless if the
ship’s sinking or not –
Steven Taylor

5.
Risk perception and knowledge
Effect of demographic factors
Shopping behavior, food choices, hygiene practices
Risk communication/Trust
Objectives

6.
OBJECTIVES AND SURVEY STRUCTURE
Shopping
behavior
Risk communication
WEB-BASED SURVEY (N=1074)
risk perception and
behavioral changes
Demographics
Ø Risk perception and
knowledge
Ø Food shopping behavior
Ø Hygiene practices and
FFV handling
Ø Source of information
Ø Attitudes and trust in
risk communication
Ø Country
Ø Gender
Ø Age
Ø Field of work

7.
91%
80%
88
95 97 96
44
52
58
67
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
Eating food
containing the
virus
Touching food
packages
Touching
contaminated
surfaces
Exposure to
infected people
Concerns about contracting COVID-19
Extreme-moderate concerns about contracting COVID-19
RISK PERCEPTION
92%

8.
AWESOME
SLIDE
FOOD CHOICES
More people stopped
ordering RTE food
during the pandemic.
Insignificant
reliance on grocery
delivery services

9.
PROTECTION MEASURES
23%
Fifty-two percent of the
respondents reported
moderate to extreme
concerns about getting
infected from
contaminated food
packages
Disposal of food
boxes, and
packages
31%
Disinfection of food
packaging before
storing at home

10.
11%increase in
reported frequent
handwashing before
food preparation
In comparison
To before the pandemic
32% and 24%
HANDWASHING PRACTICES
Handwashing practices after
touching food packages and after
returning home

11.
FRESH FRUITS/VEGETABLESWASHING PRACTICES
DURINGTHE PANDEMIC
39
65
23
39
12
34
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Before the pandemic During the pandemic
Percent
The use of cleaning agent
Lebanon
Jordan
Tunisia
• There was a significant
increase in using cleaning
agents
• The number ofTunisians using
cleaning agents doubled
during the pandemic

12.
THE CLEANING AGENTS
USED FORWASHING FFV
DURINGTHE PANDEMIC
• The use of chlorine was higher among the Tunisians
• The use of household chlorine bleach is common in
Arab countries.
• Very few reported using Dettol and cleaning detergents
on FFV

13.
Source of information

14.
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
The information received from the local authorities is clear
I trust the information from the local authorities about the outbreak of the Corona pandemic
Relevant local agencies preparing for and responding to national emergencies lead an effective
communication with publics
The local authorities respond to rumors on social media by providing accurate information
The local authorities share scientific information in an easy-to-understand way
The local authorities are quickly transmitting the information
The local authorities intervene quickly to protect the public
Percentage
Tunisia Jordan Lebanon
ATTITUDESTOWARDS RISK COMMUNICATION

15.
LIMITATIONS AND CONCLUSION
Ø Accessibility to a wider public
Ø The concern over contracting COVID-19 from foods was high
Ø Cultural-relevant messages in risk communication
Ø Coordinating efforts with the scientific societies and relevant
stakeholders

16.
THANK YOU
Perception of risk, food shopping, and hygienic
practices in Arab countries during a pandemic
Dima Faour-Klingbeil, Ph.D.
Research Fellow |University of Plymouth
Principal Consultant | DFK for Safe Food Environment