Incidences of rejection of food stuffs at national, regional and international levels due to low quality and/or contamination are on the increase, resulting in health hazards, physical and economic losses, reduced consumer confidence and lower trade competitiveness. The quality of food is governed by both pre- and post-production practices. Inadequate food handling, processing, packaging, storage, transportation, distribution and marketing may result in physical damage and/or chemical, environmental and biological contamination. In the long run, unsafe and low-quality foods may also hinder improvements in nutrition and health, poverty alleviation and social development.

The task of enhancing and maintaining quality and safety of food needs concrete, cost-effective engineering and technological actions in the processing plant and in the handling, storage and transportation chain, as well as adequate marketing practices. The actions of this Program Entity are focused and performed in the handling, processing, packaging, storage, transportation, distribution and marketing chains. Therefore, the stakeholders are food handlers, processors, distributors, traders in the post-production chain, and the scope is at the micro level, or "How to do it?" (practical, efficient and economically feasible technologies and marketing practices and strategies that should be used by stakeholders to enhance food quality and safety). The strategy lies in the application of food engineering, food technology, food science and post-harvest technology practices, together with adequate marketing practices, for enhancing and maintaining food quality and safety. This Program Entity therefore is complementary and synergistic to other related Programs in FAO, in the sense that applies specialized knowledge in the post production chain to deliver concrete environmentally sound measures at the technical and marketing levels to enhance and maintain food quality and safety.

Objective
Concrete, economically-feasible and environmentally-sound measures taken at the technical level to enhance food quality and safety during handling, processing, packaging, storage, transportation and marketing

Major Outputs
001 - Studies and technical support to evaluate problems and priorities for assuring food quality and safety along the handling, processing and marketing chain.

002 - Technical support to national policies and strategies to maintain and reinforce food quality and safety in the handling, processing and marketing chain.

003 - Technologies, methods and good practices for enhancing safety and quality of foods in the main components of the food chain, i.e. handling, processing, packaging, storage, transportation, distribution and marketing.

Users:
This Program Entity is directed to assist food handlers, processors, packagers, distributors, traders, and other stakeholders in food chains in Member Countries. Starting date is expected for the biennium 2004-05.