Only half of consumers shown nine potential hazards relating to food preparation were able to identify four or more, a conference in Dublin was told yesterday.
And when 1,000 consumers were shown a video highlighting 17 different food hazards relating to shopping, storage and food preparation, no one was able to identify them all.
Details of the research which was carried out throughout Ireland by University College Dublin and Queen's University Belfast, funded by Safefood, the Food Safety Promotion Board, were given at a conference in UCD yesterday.
Dr David McCleery, chief specialist in microbiology for Safefood, was involved in the research project where he used an innovative method to study food safety behaviour in homes.
The researchers scored 1,000 consumer responses to a video, which highlighted 17 different food hazards relating to shopping, storage and food preparation.
Dr McCleery found that no one was able to identify all potential food safety hazards.
"These results indicate the real need for education on food safety in the home. Continuously using simple hygienic practices in the kitchen will reduce the risk of transmission of foodborne pathogens, within the home," he said.
"In fact, the study reassuringly indicated that food safety education does work because those who had recently been exposed to food safety information, or who had a qualification in food, scored significantly higher, as did women and those who regularly shop and prepare food," he said.
The conference which also heard that 60 per cent of 3,000 children's households surveyed had at least one risky practice in the kitchen.
The survey, carried out over three years, found that one-third of households stored raw meat above the cooked meat in the fridge, which can allow the cooked food to be more easily contaminated from drips and spills. Some 12 per cent of people stored food beyond its sell by date.
Opening the conference at the department of agribusiness extension and rural development, UCD, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food Brendan Smith said many failed to treat basic hygiene issues seriously.
"Leaving shopping in the boot of a car in the hot sun. Eating food after its use by date has expired. Incorrect storage. Not washing hands before handling food. The list goes on," he said.