Food Protection Trends - March/April 2023 - 176

model indicated that higher chlorine concentrations resulted
in a lower risk of illness. In simulations with < 5 ppm of
available chlorine, most (>96%) of the predicted illnesses
arose from cross-contamination. Thus, available chlorine
concentrations of less than 5 ppm increase the chance of crosscontamination.
The authors concluded that the concentration
of chlorine should be kept at >10 ppm to minimize the risk of
illness due to the consumption of MPV.
Regarding price, MPV are more expensive than fresh
vegetables mainly due to the cost of production, transport,
and storage, which requires refrigeration. In Brazil, MPV
costs at least twice as much as fresh vegetables. In the
present study, monthly family income was associated with
the consumption of fresh vegetables and MPV and with the
perception of microbiological risks linked to these products.
These results are consistent with those of other studies in
which a direct relationship was found between family income
and purchase or consumption of fresh produce (14, 30,
37). In Brazil, a recent study based on data from household
budget surveys for 2008 to 2009 and 2017 to 2018 revealed
that the amount of fruits and vegetables purchased by
Brazilian households is higher in households with higher
incomes (42). The smallest amounts were purchased by the
group with incomes up to two times the minimum wage,
and the largest amounts were purchased by the group with
incomes >14 times the minimum wage.
The relationship between family income and perception
of microbiological risks also can be explained by the fact
that consumers who most buy or consume fresh vegetables
and MPV are more attentive to the characteristics of
these products. Lopes et al. (32) conducted a study about
consumer perceptions of the quality and safety of MPV and
observed that the higher the frequency of consumption, the
greater the consumer's knowledge about the quality and
safety of these products. Silveira et al. (52) conducted a
study to compare the level of nutritional knowledge between
obese and nonobese women and found a positive association
between the level of nutritional knowledge and family
income; women from both groups with a higher income
had more knowledge.
Almost half of the participants in the present study
reported distrust in the microbiological quality and safety
REFERENCES
1. Alvarenga, A. L. B., J. C. Toledo, and L. F.
O. Paulillo. 2014. Qualidade e segurança de
vegetais minimamente processados: proposta
de estruturas de governança entre os agentes
da cadeia e os sinais da qualidade. Gest. Prod.
21(2):341-354.
2. Amorim, A. M., and K. D. O. D. Nascimento.
2011. Caracterização do perfil de consumidores
de alimentos minimamente processados.
Nut. Brasil 10(6):347-353.
3. Bansal, V., M. W. Siddiqui, and M. S.
Rahman. 2015. Minimally processed foods:
overview, p. 1-15. In M. W. Siddiqui and
M. S. Rahman (ed.), Minimally processed
foods: technologies for safety, quality, and
convenience, 1st ed. Springer, New York.
4. Bautista-De León, H., C. A. Gómez-Aldapa,
E. Rangel-Vargas, E. Vázquez Barrios, and
J. Castro-Rosas. 2013. Frequency of indicator
bacteria Salmonella and diarrhoeagenic
Escherichia coli pathotypes on ready-to-eat
cooked vegetable salads from Mexican
restaurants. Lett. Appl. Microbiol. 56:414-420.
176 Food Protection Trends March/April
5. Berthold-Pluta, A., M. Garbowska,
I. Stefańska, and A. Pluta. 2017. Microbiological
quality of selected ready-to-eat
leaf vegetables, sprouts and non-pasteurized
fresh fruit-vegetable juices including the
presence of Cronobacter spp. Food Microbiol.
65:221-230.
6. Bezerra, I. N., T. M. V. Moreira, J. B.
Cavalcante, A. M. Souza, and R. Sichieri.
2017. Food consumed outside the home in
Brazil according to places of purchase. Rev.
Saude Publica 51:15.
of MPV and agreed that these products may be involved
in foodborne outbreaks. The survey did not address the
reasons for this distrust. However, because most consumers
are not used to purchasing this type of product, doubts and
uncertainties are expected. Some consumers may follow news
about the occurrence of foodborne outbreaks associated with
the consumption of MPV, mainly outside Brazil.
The results of this study contribute to a better understanding
of Brazilian consumers of MPV, providing information on
demographics, consumption habits, and perceptions of microbiological
risk. Most previous food consumption surveys
have been focused on the nutritional status of a population
rather than consumer behaviors. To accurately characterize
the risk of foodborne illness from exposure to a microbiological
hazard in a certain food, data on the frequency of
MPV consumption, amount consumed, and preparation and
consumption methods must be collected (35). This information
can then be used to support the development of QMRA
models associated with the consumption of these products.
CONCLUSIONS
The data obtained in this study indicated that although
most consumers reported familiarity with MPV, fewer
than half of them consumed these products; high price
was cited as the most limiting factor for purchase. Family
income was the only variable that had a significant impact
on the consumption of fresh vegetables and MPV and on
the perception of microbiological risks associated with
these products. Overall, these data contribute to a better
understanding of Brazilian MPV consumers and can be used
as part of the exposure assessment component in vegetablerelated
risk assessment models.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors acknowledge the São Paulo Research
Foundation for financial support (grant 2013/07914-8)
to the Food Research Center. U. M. Pinto acknowledges
the National Council for Scientific and Technological
Development (CNPq-Brazil, grant 422242/2018-7) for
financial support. J. A. F. F. Finger acknowledges the CNPqBrazil
for a scholarship. D. A. Costa acknowledges the
Unified Scholarship Program of the University of São Paulo.
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