Oluwatosin Ademola Ijabadeniyi
Durban University of Technology
Nigeria
Title: Overcoming food safety challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa through responsible food safety regulations
Biography
Biography: Oluwatosin Ademola Ijabadeniyi
Abstract
Persistent and emerging food safety risks which include and not limited to toxicological chemical risks, allergens, toxicological biological risks, microbiological risks, zoonoses, risky consumer behavior, pesticides residues and pollutants unrelated to agricultural production (e.g contaminants from mining activities) continue to be major challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa. This is a serious problem because for a long time food safety was not a priority in Africa because of other problems on the continent. As policy and decision makers begin to understand that food safety matters, it is important to understand that food safety regulation is one of most effective methods to overcome the challenges of food safety risks. In this paper, food safety challenges and their inherent causes in Africa are discussed. In addition, the importance of adopting basic food safety regulations and laws such as Codex alimentarius and WTO agreements was discussed. World Bank/GFSP initiative may also be fundamental in assisting countries in Sub-Saharan Africa in implementing food safety regulation. The authors recommend that countries in Sub-Saharan Africa proactively adopt United States’ Food Safety Modernization Act.