By Ali Imran
ISLAMABAD: IMPACT Research International, Gallup Pakistan, Nestle Pakistan and Friesland Campina Institute on Tuesday jointly organized the national symposium to raise public awareness about critical food safety challenges and their health implications.
Chairman Senate Syed Yusuf Raza Gillani embarked the discussions emphasizing the role of parliament in food safety and security with the use of modern scientific acumen.
The symposium was organized to raise public awareness about critical food safety challenges and their health implications, showcase practical measures to prevent illness through safe food handling, preparation, and consumption, discussing collaborative approaches to improve food safety across the sectors, promoting evidence-based, scalable solutions to ensure safe and nutritious food for all.
Brands and food outlets such as Cheezious and Tehzeeb Bakers also participated in the event. More than 75 participants including academics, traders, food processors, civil society activists participated in the symposium.
On the occasion, speakers said that food safety saves lives. It is not only a crucial component to food security, but it also plays a vital role in reducing foodborne disease. Every year, 600 million people fall sick as a result of around 200 different types of foodborne illness.
The burden of such illness falls most heavily on the poor and on the young. In addition, foodborne illness is responsible for 420,000 preventable deaths every year. Children under 5 years of age carry 40 percent of the foodborne disease burden, with 125,000 deaths every year.
With healthcare professionals playing a pivotal role in disease prevention and nutritional guidance, this year’s World Food Safety Day places a special focus on engaging the medical and clinical community. Safe and nutritious food must go hand in hand—there is now a global consensus that no food can be considered nutritious unless it is safe.
The economic burden of food borne diseases is also enormous. US $ 110 billion is lost each year in productivity and medical expenses resulting from unsafe food in low- and middle-income countries. In addition, foodborne diseases impede socioeconomic development by straining health care systems and harming national economies, tourism, and trade. In this context, World Food Safety Day (WFSD) is an important way of raising awareness, prevention, collaboration, and promotion of food safety.
Food borne illness is a common issue of Pakistan like other developing countries.
The diseases are transmitted either through microbial contamination and/or by chemicals exposure. There is microbial food borne outbreaks of a wide range such as hepatitis, typhoid, animal contact, and salmonella being the most common pathogen. In addition, there are various transmission channels of toxic chemicals contaminating food during food preparation, storage, and handling due to various conditions and lack of awareness. The incidence of salmonella in Pakistan is among the highest in the world, with 412 per 100,000 cases being reported annually.
A major concern in Pakistan’s food sector is the widespread supply and consumption of loose, unregulated, adulterated, and unsafe food items such as milk. There is a strong need of regulatory and administrative actions on unregulated food supply which is typically distributed without cold chain management and/or quality testing, leading to microbial and aflatoxin contamination and chemical adulteration that pose severe public health risks.
Worsening the situation, misuse of antibiotics to treat food poisoning and administering them to animals has further intensified the issue of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In the wake of the situation, there is an urgent need to organize a well-structured campaign and a national symposium calling for immediate science-based actions, highlighting clinical implications and the role of safe, nutritious food (like dairy) in prevention.
“Parliaments are at the centre of policy oversight designed to ensure food safety, security, and equitable nutrition actions. Together with parliaments of other countries, the Senate of Pakistan, is committed to take lead in South and South East Asia on public policy debates for improved food systems governance and transformations”, Syed Masroor Ahsan, Chairman Senate’s Standing Committee on Food Security.
Advisor to the Chairman on special initiatives, Rida Qazi said “Our public policies must help protect people’s right to safe and nutritious food. Parliaments and parliamentary committees can provide the required oversight to ensure that such policies are also implemented”.
Meanwhile, Executive Director, IMPACT Research International, Zubair Faisal Abbasi said “Food safety means that our food supply should not have disease-causing levels of microbiological and toxicological contaminations, along with control on allergens. Making food safe requires continuous legislative, policy, and administrative efforts and actions.”
“Science in action means that hazard and risk assessments of contaminated food must be based on scientific evidence. In addition, surveillance and monitoring of food must be well-organized and above-board”, said Bilal Gillani, CEO Gallup Pakistan.
“Our fiscal and regulatory policies must encourage that safe and healthy foods become available and affordable to masses. If taxation discourages the formal sector, then we are, in fact, building a system to incentivize informal trade, thereby increasing food borne diseases and jeopardising food security”, said Dr Muhammad Nasir, a seasoned food technologist and representative of important players in food supply chain.
“Food control systems are critical to protect consumers health and allow fair practices in the food trade. FAO provides technical assistance to implement a comprehensive and rigorous process for countries to identify their own priorities in strengthening their food control systems,” said Catherine Bessy, Senior Food Safety Officer, FAO.
“The role of parliamentarians is key in enshrining the right to adequate and nutritious food, promoting a legal framework and overseeing public policy.”, Jean Leonard Touadi, Special Coordinator Parliamentary Network Team said.
Similarly, Secretary SIFC, Jamil Ahmad Qureshi said “SIFC is committed to facilitate private sector in attracting investments, and also improve their safe food productive capacity.”
“Food safety is a social and moral commitment. We need to make special efforts to control various hazards and risks that affect human health. Excessive use of antimicrobials in food chains are serious health and administrative concerns”, said Dr. Hana Mehmood, Chief Global Health at International Research Force.
“Food safety in Pakistan is a major public health concern. It requires controlling various risks such as aflatoxins that affect our health, lower productivity, and hurt agricultural exports. Ensuring safe food supply demands collective action by scientists, industry, policymakers, and the public,” concluded by Dr Muhammad Imran, Professor Quaid -e -Azam University Islamabad.
