World Food Safety Day Information For Students

World Food Safety Day (WFSD) celebrated on 7 June aims to draw attention and inspire action to help prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks, contributing to food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism and sustainable development.

Year 2021 theme, ‘Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow’, stresses that production and consumption of safe food has immediate and long-term benefits for people, the planet and the economy. Recognizing the systemic connections between the health of people, animals, plants, the environment and the economy will help us meet the needs of the future.

Recognizing the global burden of foodborne diseases, which affect individuals of all ages, in particular children under-5 and persons living in low-income countries, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed in 2018 that every 7 June would be World Food Safety Day. In 2020, the World Health Assembly further adopted a decision on strengthening efforts on food safety to reduce the burden of foodborne disease. WHO and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) jointly facilitate the observance of World Food Safety Day, in collaboration with Member States and other relevant organizations.

Food safety is a shared responsibility between governments, producers and consumers.  Everyone has a role to play from farm to table to ensure the food we consume is safe and healthy. Through the World Food Safety Day, WHO works to mainstream food safety in the public agenda and reduce the burden of foodborne diseases globally. Food safety is everyone’s business.

World Food Safety Day: Key Highlights

• The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed in 2018 that June 7 would be regarded as World Food Safety Day every year
• Last year, the World Health Assembly passed a resolution to further strengthen global efforts of food safety to reduce the burden of foodborne disease
• UN believes that access to sufficient amounts of safe food is the key to sustaining life and promoting good health

World Food Safety Day (WSFD) is observed annually on 7 June to help prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks.

The objective of celebrating the day is to focus on food security and highlight different areas relating to human health, economic prosperity agriculture, market access, and tourism, and sustainable development, according to the World Health Organisation.

World Food Safety Day: History

The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed in 2018 that June 7 would be regarded as World Food Safety Day every year.

This came into effect after the intergovernmental organization noted that the burden of foodborne diseases was affecting children under the age of 5 and persons living in low-income counties.

Last year, the World Health Assembly passed a resolution to further strengthen global efforts of food safety to reduce the burden of foodborne disease.

Significance

UN believes that access to sufficient amounts of safe food is the key to sustaining life and promoting good health.

World Food Safety day has a crucial role in assuring and educating people about food production, how it can stay safe at every stage of the food chain, and highlighting other things like food processing, storage, and production.

“An estimated 420 000 people around the world die every year after eating contaminated food and children under 5 years of age carry 40% of the foodborne disease burden, with 125 000 deaths every year,” UN notes.

Themes

• 2021: Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow

It discusses the fact that the production and consumption of safe food have immediate and long-term benefits.

The WHO writes: “Recognizing the systemic connections between the health of people, animals, plants, the environment, and the economy will help us meet the needs of the future,”

Food Safety Related Quotes:

• Food safety involves everybody in the food chain. ~ Mike Johanns
• Get people back into the kitchen and combat the trend toward processed food and fast food. ~ Andrew Weil
• We may find in the long run that tinned food is a deadlier weapon than the machine-gun. ~ George Orwell
• Many countries have food safety systems from farm to table. Everybody involved in the food supply is required to follow standard food safety procedures. You would think that everyone involved with food would not want people to get sick from it. ~ Marion Nestle
• Civilization, as it is known today, could not have evolved, nor can it survive, without an adequate food supply. ~ Norman Borlaug
• One of the trends we’re seeing in food and agriculture is more and more consumers wanting to know things about their food and where and how it’s grown and what’s in it. ~ Dan Glickman
• So long as you have food in your mouth, you have solved all questions for the time being. ~ Franz Kafka