15. Mr Cecilio Morón, FAO, presented the contents of the first discussion paper on “National food safety systems in the Americas and the Caribbean - a situation analysis” (AC 05/2). The discussion papers and a list of the Conference Room Documents (CRDs) for the entire Conference can be found in Annexes 9 and 10. The speaker indicated that the paper had been based on information submitted from 15 countries of the region, as well as information from FAO, WHO, WTO and USDA. He highlighted the importance of food safety and the challenges and limitations to strengthening national food control systems. The presentation further outlined the situation regarding various aspects of national food control systems, such as food legislation, food inspection, laboratory support and food-borne disease surveillance. The speaker concluded by summarizing the main actions that are being taken by the governments of the region to strengthen their national food control systems.
16. The Conference expressed its appreciation to FAO for preparing the paper and agreed on the importance of strengthening national food control systems and the needs of the region in this regard.
17. The Conference noted the particular challenges for small and less developed businesses (SLDBs) to be able to fully implement the necessary food safety controls to meet national and international standards and participate in food safety activities at the national level. The approach taken in Canada to work through national industry associations in which SLDBs are members was cited as one example to overcome this challenge.
18. The importance of harmonizing national food control norms with Codex texts and utilizing other relevant tools such as the FAO/WHO model food law and FAO/WHO guidelines for national food control systems was noted. The Conference considered that the issue of mutual recognition and equivalence agreements was important to the countries of the region because, at present, some countries are having difficulty demonstrating equivalence in their national food safety control systems.
19. The need for collaborative initiatives and the avoidance of duplication of efforts at the national, regional and international level was re-enforced. The importance of the collaboration of all partners, including government, industry, consumers and academia, throughout the food chain was noted. The Conference encouraged FAO/WHO to continue their technical assistance programme to assist less developed countries to improve their national food control systems.
