Georgetown, Guyana, June 22th, 2022 (PANAFTOSA/SPV-PAHO/WHO)- The National Codex Committee (NCC) in Guyana coordinated, with support from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and funding from the Codex Trust Fund, several activities in keeping with the theme of World Food Safety Day 2022 – Safer food, better health. The activities included specialized trainings in food safety for different actors such as food inspectors and manufacturers, schools outreach programs as well as a mini-expo in Georgetown and radio and TV forecasts. Improving the capacity of the Codex Alimentarius in Guyana is essential to become one of the main exporting countries in CARICOM and prevent foodborne illnesses.
On June 07 2022, the Guyana Food Safety Authority (GFSA) officially launched World Food Safety Day in Guyana. The ceremony was hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) and collaborated with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the National Codex Committee (NCC). Ms. Natasha Beerjit-Deonarine, Monitoring and Evaluation Director at the MoA, represented the Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Zulfikar Mustapha, M.P at the ceremony dedicated to World Food Safety Day 2022.
The Hon. Minister’s message to the nation emphasized that annually, about 600 million people around the world become ill because of the food they consume. The resulting illness is called foodborne disease and is caused by dangerous microorganisms and or toxic chemicals. Minister Mustapha in his message stated that as the Government of Guyana continues to invest in the development of the Agriculture Sector to ensure the availability of wholesome foods from farm to fork, it is the Guyana Food Safety Authority’s mandate to educate the nation’s children about the harm unsafe food preparation and consumption can have on their health.
Additionally, the message also stated that “food safety and quality are of paramount importance to Guyana and that the theme for World Food Safety Day, 2022 “Safer food, better health, as simple as it sounds, is indeed apt, as it is a profound intent to foster comprehensive agro-food systems. Importantly, a system that is characterized by food that is good, safe, wholesome, and nutritious is necessary for everyone to be safe and healthy.”
Another highlight of the Hon. Minister of Agriculture – Zulfikar Mustapha message stated that “Our national policies are aligned with the CARICOM Vision 25 by 2025. Consequently, Guyana is playing a lead role in agriculture in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) since one of our major objectives is reducing the currently high percentage of imported food bill and being a major regional exporter of food.
The National Codex Committee as the main coordinator of the World Food Safety Day (WFSD) activities provided a summary of the hosted events below:
Food Safety Training at the Guyana National Bureau of Standards - (GNBS):
The Guyana Food Safety Authority (GFSA) in its observance of
World Food Safety Day 2022.
School Outreach, Region 3
Debate competition – Region 4
Market Outreach
Farmer’s Outreach
The Government Analyst Food and Drug Department – (GA-FDD):
Training of Street Food Vendors GA-FDD – facilitated by Mayor and City Council, Georgetown
Regulators Training – National Codex Committee [CTF2 R4 activity] in collaboration with PAHO/WHO and the Government Analyst Food and Drug Department – 13,14 and 15 June 2022 [70 regulators trained]
Regulators Training [Inspection techniques] site visit to a manufacturing plant in Region 4 – Georgetown
The Veterinary Public Health Unit (VPHU) - Ministry of Health conducting training and sensitization sessions in the Regions:
World Food Safety Day Mini-Expo – 10 June 2022 [Main Street, Georgetown]:
Scenes from the mini expo on Main Street, Georgetown (capital city)
Other activities:
- Guyana Livestock Development Agency (GLDA) in Region 5 – Mahaica / Berbice.
- School Outreach programmes at six (6) schools in Regions 3 and 4 – 09 June 2022.
- In summation, all the activities across the various regions shared the same message about the importance of food safety in the food supply chain. The events all highlighted the pivotal role consumers play in the support of safe and sustainable food systems.
