Join the World Health Organization (WHO) and Saraya Solutions to participate in the annual World Food Safety Day, June 7th, 2022.
We are all food consumers, and we all want our food to be safe. Why? Foodborne diseases range from mild to very serious and can even lead to death. From a social perspective, they contribute to absenteeism from school and work and reduce productivity. If we come together collectively to incorporate good food safety practices in our day-to-day lives, we can prevent foodborne illness and promote productivity. Each person has a role to play – whether you grow, process, transport, store, sell, buy, prepare or serve food – food safety is in your hands.
At Saraya Solutions our goal is to make hand hygiene a key part of food safety, preventing cross contamination with products that feel great to use so people want to use them more often, with products that are highly effective, and minimize their impact on the environment.
Safe food is essential to human health and well-being. Only when food is safe can we fully benefit from its nutritional value and from the mental and social benefits of sharing a safe meal. Safe food is one of the most critical guarantors for good health. Unsafe foods are the cause of many diseases and contribute to other poor health conditions, such as impaired growth and development, micronutrient deficiencies, noncommunicable or communicable diseases and mental illness. Globally, one in ten people are affected by foodborne diseases annually. The good news is that most foodborne diseases are preventable. Our behavior, the way we build food systems and how we organize food supply chains can prevent infectious and toxic hazards, microbial pathogens (bacteria, viruses and parasites), chemical residues, biotoxins and other noxious or dangerous substances from getting onto our plates.
According to the WHO, we need to transform food systems to deliver better health, and we need to do so in a sustainable manner. Food systems policy-makers, practitioners and investors should reorient their activities to increase the sustainable production and consumption of safe foods in order to improve health outcomes. To make safe and healthy diets accessible for all, applicable agricultural, food, trade and industry development policies need to promote food safety.
Systemic changes for better health will bring safer food, which is a critical enabler of long term human development and a prerequisite for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Statistics from the WHO show there are 600 million cases of foodborne diseases leading to 420,000 deaths worldwide each year. Foodborne illnesses are preventable, making it crucial for food processors to understand the importance of food safety. Through education and awareness, World Food Safety Day aims to help educate food processors, suppliers, and the public on how to help reduce foodborne diseases.
This year’s theme, “Safer Food, Better Health” emphasizes the role that safe, nutritional food plays in ensuring human health and well-being and calls for a set of specific actions to make food safer. Specifically calling policy makers, food businesses, educational institutions, and consumers to practice and promote safe food handling practices. Download the WHO's Guide to World Food Safety Day 2022 here
This year’s call to action includes:
- Policy makers: design food safety policies so that consumers can access safe and healthy foods, and strengthen compliance.
- Food businesses: develop and promote food safety culture and comply with international food standards. Read more about how to improve hand hygiene compliance here
- Educational institutions: promote safe food handling and support food safety education while engaging with families to promote safe food handling.
- Consumers: practice WHO's Five Keys to Safer Food and promote safe food handling at home.
