Structural Equation Modeling of Food Safety Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice among Vendors and Customers in an Informal Fruit and Vegetable Market: Evidence from Iran

• Customers practiced safer hygiene despite limited food safety knowledge. • Handwashing and reusable bags reflected household habits in market settings. • Attitude was the strongest predictor of hygienic behavior. • Vendor training improved food-safety practices measurably. • Findings support context-specific interventions in LMIC fresh markets. Food safety in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is often compromised by informal fruit and vegetable markets due to poor infrastructure, weak oversight, and unsafe handling. While the Knowledge-Attitude-Practice (KAP) framework is widely applied, links between knowledge and practice in these settings remain unclear. This study assessed KAP profiles of 111 vendors and 384 customers in an informal market in Kermanshah, Iran. The market mainly sells fresh vegetables (80–85%) and cut fruits (15–20%), typically displayed without refrigeration. Validated questionnaires revealed that only 23.4% of vendors met acceptable food safety standards, and 60% stored cut fruits improperly. Vendors, despite greater awareness, showed poorer hygiene than customers (p