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<p>The objective of this research was to collect quantitative data on:</p>
<ul>
<li>the UK consumers' understanding and awareness of campylobacter</li>
<li>their attitudes towards potential slaughterhouse treatments for reducing contamination in raw meat (specifically poultry and beef)</li>
<li>their attitudes towards messages designed to prevent the risk of cross-contamination in the home</li>
</ul>
<p>The project involved a three-stage approach: scoping, primary research and a survey.</p>
<p>The scoping stage consisted of a brief review of existing literature on the subject of consumer attitudes/understanding of food safety, food practices, production processes and treatment options. The review highlighted gaps and limitations in the existing literature and captured methodological insights that were used to inform the following research stages.</p>
<p>Qualitative work in the form of two focus groups was used to inform survey question development. This helped to achieve an understanding of how different content, language and tonal decisions were likely to affect responses to the survey questions. Once the questionnaire was finalised a cognitive testing stage followed by a small pilot survey were undertaken to ensure the questions were clearly understood and the responses could be captured without any problems.</p>
<p>The main stage survey involved face to face interviews with over 2000 respondents across the UK using a robust random probability design. The survey included collection of key demographic data. The survey response data was analysed to explore differences in views between different subgroups of the population and relationships between the data.</p>
<p>Background: The Agency has a strategic priority to reduce foodborne disease, tackling campylobacter in chicken as a priority. Identification and implementation of practical and effective interventions to reduce campylobacter in chicken is key to achieving this. Decontamination treatments applied to raw meat in the slaughterhouse could potentially have a significant effect in reducing the exposure of consumers to campylobacter and other foodborne pathogens.</p>
<p>The FSA’s campylobacter citizens’ forums, held in 2010, gathered qualitative information on UK consumers’ awareness of campylobacter and their purchasing habits. It also looked at the acceptability of interventions to control campylobacter at farm, processing and retail level. The findings indicated further focused research was required in order to have a more robust, quantitative assessment of consumers’ attitudes towards potential slaughterhouse decontamination treatments for raw meat.</p>
<p>This more detailed exploration of consumers’ attitudes will help inform the Agency's campylobacter risk management programme as well as discussions in Europe on permissible decontamination treatments for meat. </p>