Food allergies may impact only parts of the world’s population, but that impact can be lethal. People with food allergies have only limited options to prevent allergic reactions, by knowing exactly what causes allergies and avoiding the particular food. In March 2021, the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific published “Food allergies – Leaving no one behind”. The booklet explains that it is important to manage food allergies within local contexts. It is critical for countries to understand what [...]

This week saw wide interest in trade standards that will be deliberated at the upcoming 25th meeting of the Codex Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems (CCFICS25), to be held virtually from 31 May to 8 June 2021. Two webinars held on Tuesday and Thursday 23 and 25 March 2021 brought together over 300 Codex Members and Observers as part of the series of Codex technical sessions updating delegates on topics on the agendas of subsidiary bodies [...]

Water is a dwindling resource worldwide. On World Water Day 2021, the UN World Water Development Report  2021 on 'Valuing Water' is launched and in assessing water use in agriculture, calls for the implementation of management strategies that “could maximize the multiple values of water for food production” including improving water use efficiency; reducing demand for food and its consequent water use; and improving knowledge and understanding of water use for food Not all food processors have access to safe [...]

More than 500 participants gathered online on Tuesday 16 March 2021 to learn about the tools and resources that FAO and WHO make available to support countries in establishing and implementing their surveillance and monitoring systems on antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In the words of one participant, “it was so helpful to have everything laid out so clearly. Three different organizations, who does what, that was really well done”. Presentations from the Codex parent organizations and the World Organisation for Animal Health [...]

The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and Codex Alimentarius Commission Secretariat gathered online for a conversation that centred on public-private partnerships, a form of collaboration that is essential to securing food safety globally. Erica Sheward, GFSI Director, set the stage for the 11 March 2021 webinar called “How the Public and Private Sectors are Teaming Up for Safe Food for a Healthy Tomorrow” by explaining [...]

On International Women’s Day 2021, #IWD2021, the Codex Secretariat has launched a video message on the theme of the day #ChooseToChallenge, celebrating the contribution women in the Codex family make to ensure food is safe and can be traded fairly through the food safety standards of the Codex Alimentarius. 📽️ | On #IWD2021 we celebrate women’s achievement in Codex to ensure #FoodSafety and a level playing field for trade through international standards. #InternationalWomensDay @UN_Women pic.twitter.com/98FhT4Ggpd — Codex Alimentarius (@FAOWHOCodex) March 8, 2021   To [...]

Kenya, in an effort to streamline and increase efficiency for participation in Codex work recently reconstituted its National Codex Committee. On Tuesday 2 March 2021, the Codex Contact Point, housed in the Kenya Bureau of Standards held an induction programme for the newly reconstituted committee. “This move was to ensure maximum representation from all key food safety players,” said Maryann Kindiki who is the new Codex Contact Point for Kenya. Among the issues discussed were how the Codex Alimentarius Commission [...]

With remarkable speed the Polish Agricultural and Food Quality Inspectorate has already launched its awareness raising campaign as the world gears up for the 2021 World Food Safety Day on 7 June. Writing on their official website and on social media following the launch of the campaign on 18 February 2021, Poland encourages all its citizens to follow the events surrounding the UN Day and engage with others to celebrate “safe food now for a healthy tomorrow”, the theme of this [...]

Countries all over the world were watching the French Secretariat closely as the first Codex subsidiary body to meet virtually, the Codex Committee on General Principles (CCGP), launched the 2021 series of Codex technical meetings. The Executive Committee had already shown that meetings could be managed this way for smaller groups and the first ever virtual Commission in 2020 had demonstrated that high-level gatherings were also possible with bigger numbers – over 900 delegates registered. The next challenge however for [...]

أطلقت نشرة إخبارية صدرت بتاريخ 18 شباط/ فبراير على قناة هيئة الدستور الغذائي على تويتر، وعلى موقع لنكد إن لمنظمة الأغذية والزراعة، وعلى قنوات اليوتيوب حملة اليوم العالمي لسلامة الأغذية لعام 2021 تحت شعار "غذاء آمن اليوم لغدٍ مفعم بالصحة". إن هذا اليوم الذي يكتسب زخما عالميا مع اقتراب الذكرى السنوية الثالثة لإطلاقه يدعو الحكومات وجميع العاملين في مجال الأغذية والمستهلكين إلى اتخاذ الإجراءات اللازمة. ضمان سلامة الأغذية – يجب على الحكومات ضمان أغذية آمنة ومغذية للجميع. توخي السلامة في زراعة الأغذية – [...]