@FAOGhana/David Youngs

Food safety experts raise awareness at online event marking World Food Safety Day

Governments across Africa have been urged to ensure safe and nutritious food for all, during an event to mark World Food Safety Day in Ghana organised by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), the World Food Programme and the World Health Organization. Speakers at the event called for greater actions including promoting sustainable agriculture and food systems, and fostering multi-sectoral collaboration among public health, animal health, agriculture and other sectors.

This year’s World Food Safety Day focused on drawing attention and inspiring action to help prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks. The theme for this year is “Safe food now for a healthy tomorrow”. The action-oriented campaign aimed at promoting food safety awareness and called on decision makers, the private sector, civil society, and the general public to take action. The celebration was also an opportunity to highlight the importance of food safety within the context of COVID-19.

Delivering her key note address at this year’s celebration, Anna Lartey, FAO’sDirector of Nutrition, called on African leaders attending this year’s Food Systems Summit in September to put food safety issues upfront and at the centre of all deliberations. “It has taken us too long to bring food safety to the global agenda,” she said. 

The Chief Executive Officer of the FDA, Delese Mimi Darko, observed that the COVID-19 pandemic has made it a lot more compelling for even stricter adherence to food safety standards in order to help boost the immune system and prevent disease transmission.

She said food safety is a shared responsibility and everyone including growers, regulators, producers, vendors and consumers has a role to play to ensure safe production, preparation and consumption of food within the “farm to fork continuum” for a healthy life.

“One Health” approach improves food safety

Future food systems need to recognize the systemic connections between the health of people, animals, plants, the environment and the economy. Ensuring environmental health and appropriate waste management will minimize the risk of contamination of food from the environment.

“Promoting food safety is key in our efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals globally, which is a responsibility for all,” said Blaise Ouattara, Food Safety and Quality Officer at the FAO Regional Office for Africa.

The ‘One Health’ approach is key in tackling food safety issues due to the interconnectedness of the health of humans, animals, plants and the environment.

According to WFP, it has become more important, in a world stricken by a pandemic, that we intensify our efforts towards food safety now for a healthy tomorrow. “Today is an opportunity for us to take food safety a step further,” said Thomas Yeboah, WFP Ghana’s Head of Supply Chain.

Unsafe food negatively impacts on food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism and sustainable development. WHO estimates there are over 600 million cases of foodborne illnesses annually, with a death toll of about 420,000 people.

The WHO Country representative for Ghana Francis Kasolo noted thatthe most vulnerable to foodborne diseases are infants, young children, pregnant women, older persons and individuals with a weak immune system. “Infants and children account for 40% of the burden of foodborne diseases,” he said.