The connections between the health of people, animals, plants, the environment, and the economy were the focal point of Food Safety Day, celebrated on Monday, 7 June across the world.

This year’s theme of "Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow" stresses that the production and consumption of safe food has immediate and long-term benefits for people, the planet, and the economy.

The inaugural World Food Safety Day was first observed in 2019 and according to the World Health Organization, it aims to draw attention and inspire action to help prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks, contributing to food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism and sustainable development.

Samoa Observer interviewed Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (F.A.O.) Food Systems Officer, Mr Joseph Nyemah. The officer, based at Tuanaimato, said that “within the context of the Pacific, safe food will open up access to international markets for our farmers to meet the required international standards in order for them to sell their fish, taro, bananas, etc… both as raw and processed." 

"But safe also means nutritious, because in F.A.O. we say “if it is not safe it is not food”, and we need safe and nutritious foods for our populations to survive non-communicable diseases or NCDs.”

Nyemah said that Samoa's government, through the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Labour which chairs the National Codex Committee, has been working on food safety issues with farmers, sellers and restaurants in Samoa. 

He said with F.A.O's support, the Samoa Codex Committee has just been approved for a capacity building grant that will support food safety.

Food safety is everyone's responsibility, said Nyemah, adding that some may not be aware of what that actually means.

"One simple fact is that if you eat expired foods from shops, you are inviting poor health. If you come from the toilet and handle food without washing your hands, you are inviting a health crisis not only for you, but the entire population,” he said. 

On the challenges of promoting awareness of food safety in Samoa, Nyemah said understanding the links between poor food safety and disease is still a work in progress.

"People don’t easily see and understand the links between food-borne diseases and poor food safety. We still have a long way to go, for example; the fish market is in the open with flies and dust dropping on the fish," he said.  

"Fish needs to be iced to avoid contaminants. Food hawkers are all over the streets in Apia. But we can see that as a result of COVID-19, Myna’s Supermarket has installed hand washing sinks at the entrance. Even if people are not using the sinks, they send a big reminder about hand washing."