World Food Safety Day, celebrated on the 7th of June every year, will draw attention to food safety incidents. It’s a way to remind people of the responsibility they have in keeping food safe, demonstrating how to prevent illness through food safety, discussing collaborative approaches to improved food safety across sectors, promoting new solutions and ways of being more food safe. The World Health Organization (WHO) emphasized that governments, food businesses, educational institutions and workplaces, and consumers have a part to play in food safety.
This year’s theme, Food safety: prepare for the unexpected, aims to highlight just how essential safe and good food is to human health and well-being. Food safety incidents are situations where there is a potential or confirmed health risk associated with food consumption. A food incident can happen, for example, due to accidents, inadequate controls, food fraud or natural events. While being ready to manage food safety incidents requires dedicated efforts from policymakers, food safety authorities, farmers and food business operators, consumers also can play an active role. The World Food Safety Day campaign this year invites participants to look at ways they can better prepare for such unexpected food safety events.
References
World Health Organization (WHO). World Food Safety Day. 7 June 2024
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States (FAO). Food safety and quality. World Food Safety Day 2024 launch
