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Final report of the FAO/WHO Regional Conference on Food Safety for Asia and the Pacific |
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“Practical Actions to Promote Food Safety”
Distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen,
I would like to thank the organizing committee for inviting me to participate in this important meeting that comes at an historic stage of food safety challenges around the world.
Undoubtedly, food safety is the prime concern of every country. More and more, the issue of food safety cannot be considered in isolation. It becomes an integral part of the development agenda. Food safety, health and economic prosperity should be recognized for their interconnection.
Outbreaks of bird flu and mad cow disease are just a few examples of the relationship between food safety and economics. Since the end of 2003, at least 100 million birds have been slaughtered to prevent the spread of the avian influenza virus. Before the avian flu, the world had experienced the outbreak of the mad cow disease. The economic loss was enough to affect GDP growth rate of the countries with these outbreaks. This kind of outbreak always gets much attention and an enormous budget to manage it.
On the other hand, some food safety issues have been under-monitored. While millions suffer from food shortages, billions suffer from microbiological and chemical food contamination having known and unknown long term health effects. The economic impact on this matter is unlikely to be calculated accurately, but think of the potential escalating number of cancer patients and the accompanied loss of productive lives. GMO foods, preservatives, colorants, flavouring agents and state-of-the-art food processing techniques are the inventions of food business that we should be proud of. However, are they definitely safe and should they require constant vigilance? I believe this Conference can help suggest future direction.
How and can issues of food safety foster health and economic development? I am an optimist; therefore, I believe the issues are not beyond our collective capability. This Conference is certainly a significant step. Nevertheless, to be realistic, there are conflicts of interest in the food safety arena that cause complications and need to be unraveled.
Food does not only feed people but is a gigantic industry too. There are countries having advantages and disadvantages from food production and trade. This fact is, thus, not supportive to promote co-ordination among countries.
Harmonization is a creative way to get countries to work together, hopefully to establish global standards for safety, food consumption and fair practice in food trade. Yet the good intentions have turned out to be technical trade barriers to those who are in the disadvantaged positions. Countries in the Asia region have faced the imposition of zero tolerance for nitrofurans and chloramphenicol. Meanwhile, beef related products from exporting countries with even one BSE case were universally barred from our countries. Do we really have enough scientific evidence that these are necessary measures to protect our consumers’ health? Such situations are not conducive for exchanging information and transparency requirement, which are the essence of good co-operation and mutual understanding among countries.
Would and could it be more fruitful and trustworthy to implement risk-based management approach? The concept does not focus merely on hazard identification, but includes exposure, tolerability and termination of the hazards. One good example is Aflatoxin. It is a known carcinogen, yet the Codex allows 15 micrograms per kilogram (ppb), given the fact that complete elimination of Aflatoxin from the food chain is impossible. I am certain that with the advanced research information we have had, it is possible to quantify the risk associated with food, and then decide. Unnecessary food safety restrictions certainly impede economic development of food exporting countries and the world as a whole, thus increasing poverty in this interdependent world.
In addition to the implementation of the risk-based approach, I would urge participating countries to share or develop an “Inter-country Alert System” besides the local alert system each country may already have had. Such system would be beneficial as a platform to prevent crisis at the possible earliest stage. Bird flu outbreak is a very good example of the important of good warning and surveillance systems. However, this can only be true when trust and fairness are well established.
There is one fundamental fact, food and water borne diseases are still prevalent in developed countries and even worse in developing countries. The poor is the most vulnerable group. Consequently, food safety should not be aimed only at exports. Each single citizen has the right to access and consume safe food. Therefore, safe food should be available to them. While the HACCP concept has been successfully implemented in factory-scale production, “Good Hygienic Practice” should be equally enforced (or implemented in parallel). In Thailand, village-scale food production accounts for at least 30% of the total production. It is the obligation of food regulatory agencies to assure the public that small-scale production is as safe as the large-scale one.
Adapting modern technologies to suit local production is what developing countries lack. Mobilizing evidence-based research and practice in the area of production should be one main issue of capacity building activities to be discussed at the Conference. We faced difficulties when the Thai government applied the “Dual Track” Policy – encouraging foreign investment while promoting small and medium enterprise that utilized embedded indigenous skills. Village-level food producers cannot meet the GMP or HACCP requirements without huge investment of high cost technology. If the gap did not exist, our Thai local food producers could contribute more to our economy. However, from that experience, we have come to realize that the most appropriate technologies are not necessarily the expensive ones. Hence, SME can also produce safe food at an affordable cost.
Food is basically an agricultural product. Therefore, improving the agricultural standard is a key to the success of food safety. The so-called “Farm-to-fork” or “Good Agricultural Practice” concepts should be extensively and rigorously implemented, provided that it is not “High-technology Agricultural Practice”.
Effective consumer education on food safety is another important activity. I would like to emphasize. Food safety should not be considered on the supply side only, but simultaneously improving the demand side should also be targeted. Responsible authorities cooperating with all related organizations in each country have a duty to improve consumers’ knowledge on food safety.
In order to advise consumers on how to select and buy safe food for themselves and to increase consumer awareness on food consumption, information and education should be provided to the public through the different media such as, television, radio, leaflets, pamphlets, and newspapers. A lesson on food safety should also be incorporated into the curricula at every education level. Additionally, hygienic practice in food preparation processes should be also focused on consumers and poor consumption behaviours among those preferring to consume raw or undercooked food needs to be changed.
As a whole, capacity building for all personnel involved in each step of food processing plays an important role in food safety achievement. Unfortunately, we have gaps in bridging the theory, attitude and practice in all levels: officers, producers, distributors, retailers and consumers. This issue is worth considering for our way forward in actions and future collaboration.
Agencies responsible for food safety are in charge of sorting out optimum policy on food: legislation, control strategy, enforcement mechanism, private-public co-operation, research, education and public relation. Food safety policy should not be marginalized as “food only” issue. Food safety deserves the recognition of its health and economic consequences.
“Safe food for all” is the constitutive part of world development. The available resources countries now have could be more than enough if concerted attempts with an holistic approach could be established under a sincere atmosphere. I would like to pay tribute to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Health Organization for their relentless efforts to accomplish their missions.
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, I hope that this Conference is an auspicious starting point. I urge all participants to work together and bring about a better level of food safety in the countries of the Asian and Pacific region.
Thank you for your kind attention.
