On 2 June 2021 the South African Association for Food Science and Technology (SAAFoST) held a lunchtime webinar for its members and any other interested parties to mark World Food Safety Day 2021. There were three guest speakers with fascinating presentations all congruent with the theme “Safe Food Now for a Healthy Tomorrow”. The webinar was opened by Mr Malose Daniel Matlala, Deputy Director at the National Department of Health and the National Codex Contact Point for South Africa. The webinar was also supported by the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications, South Africa.

Professor Lucia Anelich, managing director of Anelich Consulting and past President of SAAFoST, started the webinar with an enlightening talk about “How safe are low moisture foods?” Professor Anelich shared some of her experiences regarding food safety challenges associated with low moisture foods, including limitations of end-product testing and the importance of implementing a Pathogen Environmental Monitoring Programme.  

Susan Featherstone, Director of Safe-Food Consulting and CEO of SAAFoST, followed next with a talk about the safety of canned foods entitled “Why not just can it?” Susan’s presentation included applicable legislation to ensure that adequate and sufficient testing takes place, as well as details of the kinds of tests required to ensure the excellent food safety record of different types of products and packaging types included in the “canned food” ambient-stable, long-life food sector.

The webinar was concluded with a presentation from Jane Nock, Chief Food Science Officer for in2food Pty Ltd, South Africa. Jane has many years’ technical and auditing experience in food and beverage manufacturing facilities. Her presentation on “The importance of hygienic design of equipment in food safety” was based on her experiences in industry as a manufacturer and supplier of Ready-To-Eat foods to a high-end retailer in South Africa.

Read more about SAAFoST: https://www.saafost.org.za/