World Food Safety Day is a globally designated day for raising awareness and increasing education on the importance of food safety and making sure the food we eat is safe and healthy for consumption. Every year on Food Safety Day, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) announces a new theme. World Food Safety Day theme 2023 is “Food Standards Save Lives”. This theme reemphasizes the fact that food standards are essential to safeguard lives and reduce the risk of food contamination.
Every year on June 7th, individuals, governments and non-profit organizations dedicate a day to educating and promoting the importance of safe and healthy eating practices, the science behind food hygiene, and the consequences of not following food safety regulations. As stated by the United Nations, “Good Food Safety is especially important for vulnerable people, including the elderly, the very young, pregnant women, children, and people with weakened immune systems.”
Food safety is an issue that affects us all. As food moves around the globe more quickly and with more ease, the likelihood of contamination increases. In 2017, the World Health Organization reported that, “an estimated 600 million – almost 1 in 10 people in the world – fall ill after eating contaminated food and 420 000 die every year, resulting in the loss of 33 million healthy life years (DALYs).” This is a sobering thought, that somewhere in the world people are consuming food that puts them at risk for contracting food borne illnesses with symptoms including dehydration, diarrhea, and of more serious concern, death.
In recent years, the process of obtaining food safety certification has become more rigorous. Regulations have become stricter, and documentation requirements more detailed. While these regulations are in place to ensure good safety practices, certain factors can cause problems for organizations attempting to meet those safety standards. Some of these issues include inadequate staffing and training, insufficient sanitation and hygiene practices, lack of proper and frequent testing, inadequate temperatures for storage and service, as well as the lack of safe methods of disposing of food that has been contaminated.
It is important to recognize that this is an ongoing process. Food safety solutions are not one-time fixes. Organizations need to develop and maintain procedures and strategies in order to stay ahead of any potential threats. In addition to procedures, such as the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) system, there must also be continued investment in appropriate protective and preventive measures such as the proper training of staff, the acquisition of appropriate food processing and handling equipment, and the implementation of appropriate food safety reporting systems.
One of the greatest challenges to improving global food safety standards stems from the lack of food safety education. Not all countries have access to the same resources and hence, they may lack the ability to not only access the proper technology and equipment, but also the knowledge and training needed to properly use it. This is why it is essential for governments, non-profit organizations and educational institutions to work together in order to make sure that people have the right tools to make informed choices when it comes to what they eat, and to also have access to the information they need to better understand food safety regulations and the dangers of not following them.
The importance of World Food Safety Day is to engage governments, nongovernmental organizations, educational institutions, and social media influencers to raise awareness of food safety and to encourage the promotion of safe food handling around the world. As the world sees further migration of food, more exchange, and the need for food safety standards to be met across the globe, World Food Safety Day is a cause that is more important now than ever.
