Millions of people in low- and middle-income countries rely on traditional food markets to maintain food security (consumers) and stable livelihoods (vendors). However, traditional markets in the informal food sector can pose significant food safety risks. This is particularly true for highly nutritious foods (i.e., animal-source foods and fresh fruits and vegetables).

Feed the Future’s Evidence and Action Towards Safe, Nutritious Food (EatSafe) is a multicountry, two-phased program that seeks to improve food safety in traditional markets by educating and empowering people to demand safer foods. In Nigeria, EatSafe operates in Kebbi and Sokoto states, focusing on fresh beef, fish, vegetables and grains (including soybeans, cowpea, maize and rice).

Infographic: Traditional Markets and Food Safety in North West Nigeria

In a new infographic, EatSafe summarizes EatSafe’s formative research activities in North West Nigeria. Specifically, EatSafe categorized consumer and vendor knowledge, perceptions and behaviors related to food safety into five topics, as shown in the image below:

The research covered five methods: quantitative survey, qualitative interviews, foodborne hazard review, focused ethnography and the enabling environment, including a stakeholder mapping exercise and policy analysis. Insights and learnings from this formative research stage are currently informing EatSafe’s intervention implementation in Nigeria.

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