Facts

Each year, approximately 600 million people fall ill due to around 200 different types of foodborne illnesses.
The burden of these illnesses falls most heavily on the poor and the young.
Furthermore, foodborne illnesses are responsible for 420,000 preventable deaths annually.

BRIEF BACKGROUND:

The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), which implements the FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme,
- Codex is the place where representatives of 188 Member Countries and 1 Member Organization (the European Union) work together to make sure food is safe.
supported a proposal to celebrate World food Safety day, in 2016.
"A year later, in July, the Conference of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in its 40th session supported the idea by adopting a resolution which was supported by WHO.
Finally, on December 20, 2018, World Food Safety day was established by the United Nations General Assembly in its resolution 73/250.
Further, the World Health Assembly passed the resolution WHA73.5, on August 3, 2020, to recognise and highlight the importance of World Food Safety Day as an important pedestal to create all-round awareness about food safety, preven tion of foodborne illness worldwide and strengthening global efforts to maintain food safety.
celebrated annually across the globe to highlight the importance of maintaining food standards.

What is food safety?

Food safety can be defined as methods to ensure that food is prepared, stored, delivered and consumed in a manner that ensures adequate nutrition and good health.
Food safety also relates to the prevention of foodborne illnesses that are contracted due to the presence of certain pathogens and toxins that can cause health hazards.
Keeping food safe is a complex process that starts on the farm and ends with the consumer.

Stages included

All stages of the food chain, from

production,
harvest and
storage to preparation and
consumption, must be considered.

FAO (UN)

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is the only international organization overseeing food safety along all aspects of the food chain.

SIGNIFICANCE:

Modern farming practices have led to a rise in accumulation of pesticides, chemicals and additives in food which, if not regulated, will harm consumers. Water contamination is also a major problem.

WFSD ensures

World Food Safety Day ensures that food standards are adhered to ensure optimum health for all consumers. "Food safety saves lives. It is a crucial component of food security and plays a vital role in reducing foodborne diseases.

Theme for 2024

The theme of WFSD 2024 aims to bring attention to unexpected crises that can threaten food safety, like power outages, natural disasters, foodborne illness out breaks caused by imported products, and other situations.
For WFSD 2024, WHO and FAO are asking all stakeholders along the food supply chain if they are prepared to address unexpected threats to food safety in an increasingly interconnected global food supply.

World Food Safety Day is an important way of:

Making people aware of food safety issues Demonstrating how to prevent illness through food safety
" Discussing collaborative approaches to improved food safety across sectors "
Promoting solutions and ways of being more food safe

FOOD STANDARDS ARE A WAY OF ENSURING SAFETY AND QUALITY:

They provide guidance on hygienic food handling for farmers and processors.
They define the maximum levels of additives, contaminants, residues of pesticides and veterinary drugs that can safely be consumed by all.
Furthermore, standards specify how the food should be measured, packaged and transported to keep it safe.
"Thanks to the application of standards on things like nutrition and allergen labelling, consumers can know whether the food will be good for them."
Most governments and organizations adopt and enforce food standards that are based on scientific risk assessments, covering hazards that are biological, chemical and physical in nature.
The standards can be developed by individual governments or organizations, or by regional or intergovernmental standard-setting bodies.
One such international food safety and quality standard-setting body is the Codex Alimentarius Commission, or Codex for short.

World Food Safety Day - June 7, since 2018