The Zambia Institute of Environmental Health ( ZIEH ) has called for scaled-up monitoring of food outlets and restaurants to ensure food safety.
Stressing the need to source food from health conducive environments, ZIEH president Kennedy Chishimba says communities should take keen interest in understanding and knowing the sources of their food to prevent food poisoning.
Speaking ahead of tomorrow’s ‘World Food Safety Day’, Mr. Chishimba said there is need to ensure food safety is promoted from the source to the level of consumption.
Mr. Chishimba urged members of the public to report to the local authorities and Ministry of Health whenever they observe questionable food safety.
He stated that his institute will ensure monitoring activities are scaled and see to it that risk based inspections are spearheaded.
“Food poisoning is in two forms those that are consuming and those that are affected. They should quickly and promptly report to the local authorities or Ministry of Health where our authorised officers will make follow ups and ensure that it is managed,” Mr. Chishimba said.
Mr. Chishimba said there is need for authorised officers to constantly be on the ground to monitor for them to be able to identify the risks and what is causing food the increasing cases of food poisoning.
Mr. Chishimba was quick to mention that restaurants that serve hot foods have not recorded cases of food poisoning adding that food poisoning is mostly recorded in food outlets that prepare food and not served on time.
“You might be surprised to note that we have never recorded food poisoning in a restaurant where nshima, hot foods are served because the food is served whilst it is hot so pathogens cannot survive when temperature are above 70 degrees Celsius,” he said.
World Food Safety Day is celebrated annually every 7 June to draw attention and mobilize action to prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks and improve human health.
This year’s World Food Safety Day theme is : “Safer food, better health” and launches the campaign organizing to inspire global participation.
Safe food is one of the most critical guarantors for good health. Unsafe foods are the cause of many diseases and contribute to other poor health conditions, such as impaired growth and development, micro-nutrient deficiencies, non-communicable or communicable diseases and mental illness.
Globally, one in ten people are affected by foodborne diseases annually.
Food safety must not be consigned to annual commemorations because it’s serious business. Most incommunicable diseases come from the food we eat. The primary watchdog which is the Council health department stopped functioning long ago and the food permits are mere papers. At peasant level the main culprits are the poultry farmers. Dead chickens aren’t disposed but are delivered to market restaurants very early in the morning by guards or farm workers, sometimes with the knowledge of their employers. That’s the nshima & chicken you eat at Soweto for K10 plus bevula. Most outlets recycle their food and usually get supplies from illegal sources. Most beef sausage is a mixture of pork, soya & fats. Why should govt allow people to eat expired layers? Cheap cooking oil is transformer oil…
Have you noticed that those that serve don’t usually eat the food they cook? Try to observe. A restaurant owner will send his worker to buy them Hungry Lion but have you wondered why? Now they even embalm fresh fish. Law enforcers concentrate on chasing politicians yet there’s so much crime that goes unattended. We’re now a country on disorder. When you’re diabetic then you’ll realize that most of the honey on the money is blended with sugar molasses. Can we blame that on KK, FTJ, LPM, RB, MCS, ECL or HH?
Popular beef spots like turn pike and kasukwe that sell beef cheaply sell carcasses of infected dead animals or stolen. There is absolutely no one to check. When they are there their supervision is questionable.
Report to who? The Police do not respond to you unless you are a ruling party member backed by a cabinet holder
Whatever went wrong with our country