What a UV Light Showed a Malaysian Wet Market Vendors About Hygiene

“I’ve been working at the market for years, but I’ve never seen anything like the GloGerm UV test before. It really changed how I think about handwashing between handling cash and produce.” - A vendor at Pasar Pandan Jaya

AMPANG, MALAYSIA — Every morning, vendors at Pasar Pandan Jaya handle cash, raw meat, fresh produce, and each other’s company in the same tight space. That daily mix of people, animals, food, and waste makes hygiene a shared responsibility, not just a personal one.

On 10-11 August 2026, nine students from Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia set out to make that responsibility visible. Over two days, the SAFE-PASAR team turned the market into a classroom, taking public health discussions from the main stage straight to the market floor.

Day one opened with a panel that skipped the usual lecture format. A public health specialist explained the medical reasoning, a municipal council representative outlined local support and rules, and a vendor described what actually happens at the stall. Three different vantage points landed on the same conclusion that a safer market benefits everyone who works and shops there.

“SAFE-PASAR demonstrates how public health knowledge can be translated into meaningful community action.” — Assoc. Prof. Dr. Shalinawati, Project Supervisor

Then came the demonstration that stuck. Using GloGerm lotion and UV light, the team showed vendors germs clinging to their hands after washing with dry tissue or wet wipes alone — invisible to the naked eye but glowing clearly under the light. Soap and running water washed it away. Seeing is believing, and the visual proof said more than words ever could.

On day two, the students moved onto the market floor to meet vendors at their own stalls. Through short, hands-on exercises, vendors practiced telling everyday ailments apart from signs of infectious illness and spotting common food-safety risks around their counters. Meeting people where they work made the lessons feel practical, not theoretical.

“Throughout this project, I truly realized that for these vendors, the market is their livelihood. I hope our efforts not only helped protect their health but also gave them a stronger sense of pride in maintaining a safe environment for their customers.” — Zulfa, Project Leader

SAFE-PASAR is one of nine student-led projects running across Southeast Asia, India, and Bangladesh under the SEAOHUN Campus-to-Community (C2C) Challenge, supported by Chevron. Like their peers across the region, the Malaysian team took an academic idea, brought it into a real community, and left something behind that will outlast the two-day program: vendors who now wash their hands differently, and a market that trusts its own instincts a little more.