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Knowledge4Policy
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  • Publication | 2021

Food safety training in East Africa: A review of university courses with food safety content

Global Food and Nutrition Security

Food safety is attained when foods are handled, processed and stored in a manner that effectively reduces the risk of exposure of an individual to hazards capable of causing foodborne illness. Hazards are things that can harm human health and are classified as biological, chemical or physical. These may cause illnesses that range from physical harm to diarrhoea to cancers with different health outcomes. Foodborne gastro-intestinal infections cause at least 550 million diarrhoeal illnesses and at least 230,000 deaths yearly1 . A similar burden results from non-diarrhoeal illness. The burden is not equally distributed. Children under five years of age bear about 40% of the global burden of foodborne diseases. The cost of foodborne diseases in low- and middle-income countries, in terms of both productivity and treatment, is estimated at 110.3 billion United States dollars (USD)2 a year globally and USD 16.7 billion of the global sum is the cost borne by countries in sub-Saharan Africa. This cost is high considering that these countries are struggling to improve socioeconomic development. It excludes non-tangible costs that are difficult to quantify. Lack of food safety constrains health, tourism and trade, and makes it difficult to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Food safety is an integral part of food security and nutrition. Of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, seven cannot be achieved without addressing food safety. The African Union Malabo Commitment3 of increasing food trade by 2025 is likely to be unachieved if food safety is not addressed.