Confirmed that 135 million people globally are stuck in poverty
"FAO": 350.3 billion dirhams losses to the international economy from the handling of unsafe food
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has reported that the cost of the impact of the handling of unsafe food on the economies of low and middle income countries amounts to $ 95.2 billion (350.3 billion dirhams) in lost productivity, in addition to $ 15 billion in medical expenses. every year.
WHO experts said that providing safe food for the public is essential to human health, as the World Health Organization estimates that nearly 600 million cases of foodborne diseases and 420,000 deaths annually can be linked to foodborne diseases, stressing that more About 135 million people around the world are stuck in extreme poverty and highly vulnerable to the impacts of the Coronavirus outbreak on food security.
The experts made statements during today's event, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), to discuss "the one health approach, food safety and sustainable food systems."
The representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), one of the United Nations organizations in the UAE, Dino Francescotti, said, “Millions of people live with chronic hunger every day, of whom more than 135 million are trapped in extreme poverty and are highly vulnerable to the effects of the outbreak of the Coronavirus. New (Covid-19) on food security », affirming that 60% of the diseases that affect humans are from animals, as five new infections appear in humans every year, three of which come from animals, and three quarters of newly emerging animal diseases can be transmitted to humans.
In turn, the chief livestock development officer at the FAO, Marcus Thibaut, said, "The idea of one health lies in the link between the health of individuals and the health of animals and the environment in which we share, as diseases of animal origin spread between animals and humans," pointing out that 61% Of all human pathogens, and 75% of all emerging pathogens come from animals, for example, (Covid-19), Middle East respiratory syndrome, swine flu, and bird flu, stressing that no one sector can effectively address them alone, which is What is imperative is the necessity for multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral cooperation in order to deal with it and limit its effects.
For her part, the official in charge of food safety at the «FAO», Catherine Bessy, said that "the rigorous evaluation of national food control systems is an important step forward towards raising the efficiency of capacities over time, as the primary stakeholders are brought together in this work and planning for future investments." .
Bessi explained that providing safe food to the public is essential to human health, as the World Health Organization estimates that approximately 600 million cases of foodborne diseases and 420 thousand deaths annually can be linked to foodborne diseases, indicating that the impact of unsafe food costs The economies of low and middle-income countries 95.2 billion dollars in lost productivity, and 15 billion dollars in treatment expenditures each year, confirming that the Corona pandemic highlighted the need to prepare for, prevent, detect and respond to similar diseases emergencies in order to avoid future pandemics and their dangerous side effects.
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