Abstract:
Animal source foods (ASFs) are the foods that are derived from the body of animals.
Since ASFs are rich in nutrients, they can easily be contaminated and become unsafe
for human consumption. Annually millions of people in the world suffer from food
born diseases through consumption of contaminated ASFs. In this context, a study
was conducted to identify the underline dimensions of ASFs safety attitudes among
consumers in order to group them for the purpose of conducting ASFs risk
reduction programmes. Three hundred adult consumers were randomly selected
from coastal and inland areas of Ampara district, Sri Lanka. A pre tested structured
questionnaire comprising of questions related to demographic information and
ASFs safety attitudes were distributed among the consumers. The data were
analyzed using SPSS (version 20). Factor analysis identified six dimensions of ASFs
safety attitudes and named as Avoid risks, believe government regulations, selfconfidant,
seek knowledge, believe awareness programmes and believe processors
and consumers. Hierarchical cluster analysis based on the factor scores yielded 3
consumer segments as trusting, confidant and dependent. Chi-square analysis
showed that four (education, area of living, ethnicity and religion) out of 12
demographic variables were significantly (p<0.05) different among consumer
segments. Findings of this study could effectively be utilized in improving consumer
attitudes on ASFs safety and planning risk reduction programmes.
