SAFE FOOD Risks posed by unsafe food could rapidly evolve from a local problem into an international emergency, an official of the World Health Organization (WHO) said Friday (June 8, 2024) in celebration of World Food Safety Day. Reports said children under the age of 5 carry 40 percent of the foodborne disease burden. Anadolu
GENEVA – The World Health Organization (WHO) said Friday that every day, an estimated 1.6 million people become sick from eating unsafe food.
Children under the age of 5 carry 40 percent of the food-borne disease burden, Francesco Branca, head of nutrition and food safety at the WHO, told a UN press briefing in Geneva on World Food Safety Day.
Risks posed by unsafe food could rapidly evolve from a local problem into an international emergency, Branca said as he stressed that food safety hazards do not recognize borders.
Humanitarian crises in many parts of the world drive food insecurity and compromise food safety.
He urged governments to ensure that food safety is clear in their national action plans for health security and that the risk communication plans are updated and move towards integrated surveillance systems for animal, environmental, and human health.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) sees safe food as "fundamental" to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a senior food safety officer told the briefing.
Markus Lipp added that safe food is also one of the prerequisites to fulfill FAO’s strategic plan to enable better production, nutrition, the environment and lives.
"When food is produced and traded in a safe and sustainable agrifood system, it contributes to a healthy life and improves sustainability by enabling market access and productivity, which drives economic development and poverty alleviation, especially in rural areas," Lipp said. "In particular, improved food safety will safeguard public health and reduce child mortality," he said, as children under 5 carry the highest burden of foodborne diseases. Anadolu
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