THE first-ever celebration of the United Nations’ (UN) World Food Safety Day was recently marked globally – aiming to strengthen efforts to ensure that the food we eat is safe.
It can be noted that every year, nearly one in ten people around the world, which is estimated at 600 million people, fall ill and some 420,000 die after eating food contaminated by bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances.
Unsafe food also hinders the development in many low- and middle-income economies, which lose billions of dollars in productivity associated with illness, disability, and premature death suffered by workers.
In connection with the celebration, the theme used for the World Food Safety Day 2019 is that food safety is everyone’s business.
It is important to note that food safety contributes to food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism and sustainable development.
In line with the recent celebration, UN has designated two of its agencies – the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to lead efforts in promoting food safety around the world.
FAO and WHO have already joined forces to assist countries to prevent, manage, and respond to risks along the food supply chain, working with food producers and vendors, regulatory authorities, and civil society stakeholders – whether the food is domestically produced or imported.
FAO says that “Whether you are a farmer, farm supplier, food processor, transporter, marketer or consumer, food safety is your business, and there is no food security without food safety.”
FAO and WHO also underscored the importance of everyone’s access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food, and that safe food is critical to promoting health and ending hunger, two of the primary aims of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Safe food allows for suitable intake of nutrients and contributes to a healthy life.
Safe food production can improve sustainability by enabling market access and productivity, which drives economic development and poverty alleviation, most particularly in the rural areas.
The aim of the World Food Safety Day is to inspire action to help prevent, detect, and manage foodborne health risks.
The right actions along the food supply chain, from farmers to consumers, as well as good governance and regulations, are essential to food safety.
Because of this, FAO and WHO have created a new set of guidelines to show how everyone can get involved.
The guide includes five steps to make a sustained difference to food safety:
* Ensure it’s safe – Governments must ensure safe and nutritious food for all;
* Grow it safe – Agriculture and food producers need to adopt good practices.
* Keep it safe – Business operators must make sure food is safely transported, stored and prepared;
* Check it’s safe – Consumers need access to timely, clear and reliable information about the nutritional and disease risks associated with their food choices; and,
* Team up for safety – Governments, regional economic bodies, UN organizations, development agencies, trade organizations, consumer and producer groups, academic and research institutions and private sector entities must work together on food safety issues./PN
