©FAO

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has provided equipment to the Kumasi abattoir to boost food safety and quality control, under a collaboration with the abattoir and national authorities. It is part of FAO’s food safety programme in Ghana that aims to strengthen quality control through applying a food safety management protocol known as the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) system.

The equipment and tools provided by FAO include gloves, aprons, stainless steel knives, eye-protecting goggles, rubber boots, infra-red thermometers, and knife sterilizers.  

At the handover ceremony, the Managing Director of the Kumasi abattoir, Alhassan Mahamadou, expressed appreciation for the collaboration with FAO, emphasizing the crucial role of such collaborations in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 2 Zero Hunger, and recognizing that food security is unattainable without safe food.

Two members of the abattoir’s Board of Directors, Board Chair Nana Opoku Agyemang and Nana Yaw Wiredu (Board Committee Chair-Operations) also attended the ceremony and expressed the appreciation of the board for the collaboration and support from FAO.

Dr. Blaise Ouattara, FAO Food Safety and Quality Officer, reiterated FAO’s commitment to support the Government of Ghana’s efforts to comply with international food standards to protect public health from foodborne diseases and to facilitate access to continental and international markets. He also said the successful programme at the Kumasi abattoir could be replicated in other African countries.

Food security requires food safety

Other attendees at the event included the Dean of the School of Veterinary Medicine, Prof. Benjamin Obukowho Emikpe, the Regional Environmental Officer John Donkor, and the Regional Veterinary Officer Dr. Nabel Abadu who each emphasized the importance of sanitation and proper veterinary inspections for a healthy abattoir. They also highlighted that the HACCP programme at the Kumasi abattoir will help to train personnel in the areas of food safety.  

Since 2019, FAO has been supporting the Veterinary Service Directorate of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) and the Environmental Health and Sanitation Directorate of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development to improve food safety standards and best practices along the meat value chain in Ghana. Through this collaboration, several activities have been implemented including a mapping and profiling of slaughter establishments in Ghana and capacity development training for members of the butchers’ association, abattoir workers, environmental health officers and meat inspectors. It is part of FAO’s global implementation of its FAO Strategic Framework 2022-2031 which supports countries to obtain the Sustainable Development Goals through better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life, leaving no one behind.