Oyo State government has called for concerted efforts and more collaboration with relevant stakeholders to ensure food taken by the individual is safe.
Commissioner for Health, Dr. Oluwaserimi Ajetunmobi, while declaring open 2024 World Food Safety Symposium Open at the Ibadan Business School, emphasized that achieving food safety requires collective efforts and continuous enlightenment.
The Symposium organized by the Oyo State Ministry of Health to commemorate 2024 World Food Safety Day was in collaboration with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and World Health Organization (WHO) .
The commissioner noted that the event was to create awareness and enlighten stakeholders for them to contribute their quota to reduce the risk of food borne illnesses.
She admonished all and sundry to be conscious of the quality of food to eat and the production process to promote healthy living .
She said: “World Food Safety Day serves as a global call to action for decision makers, private sectors and all stake holders to prioritize food safety by working together to create a safer food environment.
“Safe food is one of the most critical guarantors for good health; only when food is safe can it meet nutritional needs and help children to grow and develop and adults to live an active and healthy life.
“Oyo State Ministry of Health is committed to global best practices to achieve its primary goal of safe food to ensure citizens’ health. Through the department of Food, Water and Laboratory Services, the Ministry pursues its food safety objective of reducing food safety hazards in Food Business Operators’ (FBOs) products by the implementing different initiatives in line with the State Strategic Health Development Plan (2018 – 2022), the State Registration and Quality Control Regulations (2012), the Public Health Law (Cap 135) (2000), and other extant laws in Nigeria.
” In the same vein, the discussion topic of today’s symposium also echoes the sentiments of Oyo State House of Assembly and their commitment to making safer food available to the residents of the State.
“To this end, the Ministry of Health, as well as other line MDAs on food safety, is willing and ready to advance this laudable parliamentary action by working to create in Oyo State a well prepared and resilient food safety control system in particular and healthcare systems in general.
” I am using this platform to encourage multi-sectoral collaboration through partnerships on technical assistance, capacity development, awareness-raising and policy dialogues to strengthen our response to food safety crises and build a resilient food system.
“Let us work together to build a future where our food systems are not only safe but also able to withstand the unexpected challenges that may come our way.
Speaking on the theme of the symposium
“Preparing for the unexpected: Addressing Food Safety Crises and Challenges Through Collaborative Efforts” at the event, the keynote speaker, Mr. Femi Stephen of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, said it was essential to continually build the capacity of people involved in the food distribution chain to achieve food safety in the communities.
He explained that constant information sharing among relevant stakeholders and collaborative approaches are inevitable in tackling the menace of unsafe food, which he said could be attributed to different factors.
He harped on the need to put in place surveillance and response teams across states and empower them, saying this will enable them to enforce compliance to global food safety standards.
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