Mongolia is actively engaged in strengthening collaboration efforts to combat foodborne antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as part of the "Action to support implementation of Codex AMR texts (ACT)" project. A delegation from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) visited the country on 12-14 June 2023 to learn more about the project and future steps in the field. 

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) organized a webinar entitled “Impact of dietary chemicals on the gut microbiome and health - A food safety perspective” on 12 June 2023. Carmen Diaz-Amigo, FAO Food Safety Specialist, shared the main results of the three publications FAO recently released focused on assessing the scientific evidence regarding the impact of microplastics, and residues of pesticides and veterinary drugs on the gut microbiome and their potential connection to adverse health effects. Catherine Bessy, FAO Senior Food Safety Officer, moderated the panel featuring Vittorio Fattori and Karel Callens (FAO), Sangeeta Khare...

Last week FAO began a project to improve the food control system in Zimbabwe. A 5-million-euro project funded by the European Union, "Strengthening of Capacities and Governance in Food and Phytosanitary Control,” which began last November, is providing technical support and working with Competent Authorities and other leading institutions in 11 Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Member Countries to build up capabilities, strengthen governance and improve strategic planning around two main components: food safety and plant health. As part of the food safety component, an assessment of the national food control system will be carried out in Zimbabwe....

Catherine Bessy recounts how her childhood eating in her grandmother’s Paris kitchen and working the summers on her family’s farm gave her an early exposure to the importance of healthy food and planted the seeds of a career in which she has sought to improve food safety around the globe through good governance and smart policy. Interviewer: Today we are sitting down with Catherine Bessy, Senior Officer at FAO and really the mind behind the EU project “Strengthening of Capacities and Governance in Food and Phytosanitary Control”.  Catherine, thanks for meeting with me today. Before delving into the project, I want...

In April 2023, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a milestone publication “Food safety aspects of cell-based food”. As the publication has a total of 150 pages with rich information on terminologies, production processes, regulatory frameworks, country case studies, food safety hazard identification process and results with the short guide for relevant science communication, a short factsheet was prepared for food safety competent authorities to grasp the contents of the publication. The publication has nine items for regulators working in the area of food safety, making references to the...

It’s 7 June and it’s World Food Safety Day, the day people all around the world remind themselves of the importance of food safety and the role we can all play in preventing, detecting and managing foodborne illness.  Hundreds of events have been organized worldwide at the local level up to the regional and international levels. Food industry workers, experts and consumers from schools, NGOs, local and national governments, private companies and academic institutions are taking up the challenge to learn about and spread knowledge about how we can all ensure food is safe to eat - for everyone, everywhere. Four global...

The Food Safety Magazine has published an article penned by Corinna Hawkes, Director of the Food Systems and Food Safety Division. The piece, entitled, Sound science is the foundation of food standards that save lives, is a nod to the theme for this year’s World Food Safety Day, Food standards save lives. The article speaks about the importance of World Food Safety Day, describes how such a day came into being and the vital role that FAO plays in maintaining food safety across the global agrifood systems. In keeping with this year’s World Food Safety Day theme, the piece elaborates on...

Last week missions to validate the data gathered on the food control systems in the island nations of Comoros and Seychelles were conducted by two teams of international consultants as part of an ongoing two-year project to strengthen governance around food safety and plant health in 11 African Union countries.   The project, funded by the European Union and spearheaded by a team of experts from FAO, began activities last November in the Union of Comoros and Seychelles where focal points underwent a series of trainings on the food  control system assessment tool and on the process of collecting...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has released three publications reviewing scientific literature on the effects of regulated substances (residues of pesticides and veterinary drugs) and non-regulated compounds (microplastics) on the gut microbiome and health from a food safety perspective. This upcoming webinar will present the main findings of these reviews, focusing on their relevance for food safety risk assessment. Following the presentation, a panel discussion will take place. Speakers will include: Moderator: Catherine Bessy – Senior Food Safety Officer, Food and Agriculture Organization Presenter: Carmen Díaz-Amigo – Food Safety Specialist, Food and Agriculture Organization Technical panel: Karel Callens – Senior...

Twenty-one scientists from nine different African countries (Benin, Cameroon, Eswatini, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Zambia, Zimbabwe) convened on 21-25 May at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) in Accra, Ghana, to launch a new wave ofdiagnostic...