As we gear up for this year’s celebrations, the World Food Safety Day team has put together a “Programme of events” outlining the different activities being organized by FAO, WHO and Codex to expand on the 2026 theme “From burden to solutions – safe food everywhere”. The programme is posted on the homepage of the World Food Safety Day website. World Food Safety Day this year is led by WHO and focuses on the release of the updated WHO estimates of [...]

In 2002, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) of the Republic of Korea designated 14 May as Food Safety Day, and has celebrated the Day every year since to raise public awareness and understanding of food safety and to build social consensus on its importance. Marking its 25th celebration this year, the commemorative ceremony brought together approximately 300 participants from the food industry, consumer organizations, academia, and related sectors to reaffirm the importance of food safety and share future [...]

The Action to support implementation of Codex AMR texts (ACT) project successfully held its closure meeting on 14 May 2026 in Seoul, Republic of Korea, bringing together donor representatives, colleagues from FAO headquarters and regional offices, country teams, and Korean official development assistance experts to review the project’s achievements and discuss future directions for sustainable antimicrobial resistance (AMR) management. Launched in 2021 with the support of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) of the Republic of Korea, the ACT [...]

The 6th Global Conference on Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance (GCFA) was successfully held on 13 May 2026 in Seoul, Republic of Korea. The conference has become an important international platform for discussing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the non-human sectors, particularly within food and agriculture systems, applying a One Health approach. This year’s conference was organized during the Korean Food Safety Week. Prior to the GCFA, the Asia-Pacific Food Regulatory Authority Summit (APFRAS) was held on 11–12 May, creating strong momentum for regional collaboration [...]

A successful 49th session of the Codex Committee on Food Labelling has concluded in Ottawa, Canada. Upon adoption of the session report, Chairperson Parthiban Muthukumarasamy congratulated the delegates for the week’s achievements. “I would like to highlight what truly defines this committee,” he said. “The spirit and the cooperation throughout this week; we have seen open dialogue, respect for different perspectives, and the willingness to find common ground. This is not always easy and particularly when addressing issues that intersect [...]

From the CCNE Secretariat The FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for the Near East (CCNE), in collaboration with the Arab Codex Initiative, continues to strengthen scientific coordination and regional engagement in Codex work through the establishment of regional expert working groups across priority technical areas relevant to Arab and Near East countries. The Arab Codex Initiative is implemented by the Arab Industrial Development, Standardization and Mining Organization (AIDSMO), in partnership with the Global Food Regulatory Science Society (GFoRSS). The initiative aims to support more [...]

The 49th session of the Codex Committee on Food Labelling (CCFL) opened in Ottawa, Canada, with a warm welcome from Chairperson, Parthiban Muthukumarasamy, and opening remarks from Dr Celia Lourenco, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister of the Health Products and Food Branch of Health Canada. “Canada places a high importance on the work done by Codex. Like many of you, we believe that the work of Codex is imperative to achieving our national food safety, public health and consumer protection objectives,” said [...]

Seoul, Republic of Korea The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) of the Republic of Korea hosted the fourth Asia-Pacific Food Regulatory Authority Summit (APFRAS 2026) in Seoul, Republic of Korea, on 11–12 May 2026 under the theme “A Strategic Leap Toward the Asia-Pacific Food Regulatory Harmonization and Partnership.” The Summit brought together representatives of food regulatory authorities from 14 countries across the Asia-Pacific region, alongside three international organizations, to discuss emerging food safety challenges and opportunities for enhanced regional collaboration. [...]

The 37th session of the Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products (CCFFP) has concluded its meeting by correspondence by adopting the report of a fruitful meeting. A number of key decisions were made, and Norway made a key announcement regarding the hosting of the Committee. We asked the chairperson, Vigdis Synnøve Veum to tell us more. Vigdis, the Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products (CCFFP) reconvened by correspondence for its 37th session 7 April–7 May 2026. What were the [...]

As part of activities related to World Food Safety Day, Japan Food Safety Management Association (JFSM) conducted a lecture and workshop at Visayas State University in the Philippines. The programme was organized by the ASEAN FOOD Industries Human Resource Development Association (AFH) as a special endowment lecture. On 22 April 2026, JFSM Chairperson, Masanori Kotani, delivered a lecture titled “Enhance Food Integrity: Food Safety and Social Responsibilities through Food Chains.” The lecture introduced Japan’s approaches to good management practices (GMP), the [...]