It’s 7 June! Happy World Food Safety day!

This year we celebrate under the theme “food safety: prepare for the unexpected,” which coincides with the 20th anniversary of the FAO/WHO International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN). INFOSAN was established following the development and adoption of the Codex Principles and Guidelines for the Exchange of Information in Food Safety Emergency Situations (CXG 19-1995), which was the genesis of INFOSAN in terms of designation of emergency contact points at the national level. These guidelines were subsequently revised to include reference to the INFOSAN network

The World Food Safety Day theme gives us an opportunity to acknowledge that even when the unexpected happens, from natural disasters to a power outage, there are ways we can ensure our food is safe.

Understanding how food becomes unsafe and ensuring good communication and emergency planning all play into preparing for the unexpected, whether you work as part of a food safety authority or a food business, or if you are a consumer.

The Codex Alimentarius has prepared a case study that demonstrates how these factors helped resolve a food safety incident that initiated in Honduras and affected people across the world. The facilitation of information sharing by INFOSAN and the use of Codex texts were key to the successful conclusion to this story, which offers a number of lessons learned.

You can test your food safety knowledge with FAO’s new food safety interactive article and quiz and there are many ways you can join the celebrations by promoting World Food Safety Day and key messages on social media platforms.

Promote World Food Safety Day with the hashtag #WorldFoodSafetyDay, tag @FAOWHOCodex on X

Download the Codex Case Study

Test your food safety knowledge

Find out about World Food Safety Day events around the world

Access social media assets and lots more

World Food Safety Day website
World Food Safety Day Communication Toolkit
World Good Safety Day Trello board
World Food Safety Day asset bank

Read more

Principles and Guidelines for the Exchange of Information in Food Safety Emergency Situations (CXG 19-1995)