Bergen Workshop on nutrition and food safety, based on the surveys with the RV Dr Fridtjof Nansen
A group of 20 experts from 10 countries, FAO and the World Fish Centre met in Bergen on 13 to 15 November to discuss research priorities related to food safety and nutrition in the context of the EAF-Nansen Programme.
The Institute of Marine Research hosted the meeting. This area of work is new to the EAF-Nansen Programme and its inclusion was motivated by the poor information on nutritional and food safety aspects available in developing countries, and the possibility of being able to opportunistically sample a wide range of species and geographic areas in connection with the surveys of the RV DR. Fridtjof Nansen. Since 2017, around 180-200 samples from nearly 100 species have been collected, from 15 countries and prepared for future analysis from West and East Africa and the Bay of Bengal. The workshop reviewed samples collected so far, discussed priorities for food safety hazards and nutrition elements to be analyzed, discussed relevant scientific work to be undertaken and identified responsibilities. In addition to achieving its specific objectives, the workshop contributed to put focus on and initiate collaborative work across country borders on these important aspects of nutrition and food safety.