Side Events

The rapid globalization of food production and trade has increased the potential likelihood of international incidents involving contaminated food. Food safety authorities all over the world have acknowledged that ensuring food safety must not only be tackled at the national level but also through closer linkages among food safety authorities at the international level. This is important for exchanging routine information on food safety issues and to have rapid access to information in case of food safety emergencies.

Since 2000, the World Health Assembly - WHO's top governing body - has adopted several resolutions on the subject of food safety. In these, Member States have called for WHO to be more proactive in communicating about food safety. WHO has also been asked to provide tools and support to Member States to increase their capacity to respond to health emergencies posed by natural, accidental and intentional contamination of food. Furthermore, WHO's recent report on the terrorist threats to food identified a food safety emergency network as one of the basic preparedness measures that was urgently needed.

In view of these needs as well as the need to improve collaboration between food safety authorities, and in the event of the Global Forum 2, WHO will inaugurate a new International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN). A food safety emergency network (INFOSAN EMERGENCY) will be an integral part of INFOSAN. The food safety emergency component is intended to complement and support the existing WHO Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) which also includes a Chemical Alert and Response component.

• Presentation of INFOSAN
• INFOSAN - linking food safety authorities of the world
• Linkages to other foodborne disease and food safety networks
• Presentation of the overarching WHO Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) and its response to outbreaks of international importance
• INFOSAN and Codex - exchange of information in Food Safety Emergency situations
• The Emergency Component of INFOSAN - as part of WHO GOARN