Turkey holds intersectoral workshop on food safety from “One Health” perspective
WHO
On 11–12 May 2015, a national intersectoral workshop on strengthening food safety systems was conducted in Ankara, Turkey jointly with WHO and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The workshop was opened by high-level representatives of the Ministry of Health; the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock; and Hacettepe University. 100 national professionals from the public health, veterinary and agriculture sectors, as well as international experts from WHO/Europe, the FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, Codex Alimentarius Commission, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) participated in the workshop to discuss food safety from a "One Health" perspective.
The objective of the workshop was to support the strengthening of the food safety system in Turkey emphasizing intersectoral cooperation and information sharing in line with the Health 2020 framework, which calls for a health in all policies approach. The 2-day workshop addressed various topics relevant to a modern, holistic and risk-based food safety system, including surveillance and monitoring of foodborne and zoonotic diseases and hazards, the One Health approach, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) from a food safety perspective, Codex Alimentarius and food safety risk communication.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Professor Dr Ümmühan Şebnem Harput, Vice Rector of Hacettepe University, underlined the importance of intersectoral cooperation for food safety with health in all policies using scientific evidence.
National experts and representatives from the health, agricultural and veterinary authorities, academia, and civil-society organizations, actively and enthusiastically discussed ways to improve intersectoral collaboration and information sharing and suggested next steps.
As part of the workshop, a draft "One Health Declaration" was developed aiming at strengthening intersectoral collaboration in the prevention and control of foodborne diseases and related antimicrobial resistance. This draft will be shared with high-level officials of the relevant institutions for their comments and finalization.
