According to the report, food safety deserves urgent attention because foodborne hazards account for 91 million acute illnesses and 137,000 deaths annually in Africa. The World Bank estimates show that each year unsafe food costs economies of low- and middle-income countries about US$110 billion in lost productivity and healthcare expenses.

“The report is a call to action to develop and implement feasible, locally relevant interventions that we know can reduce the severe consequences of foodborne illness,” says Michael Taylor, co-author of the Global Food Safety Partnership report released last week (6 February).

For instance, the report found that less than five percent of donor investments addressed specific public health risks, such as Salmonella and E.coli, that local consumers face when purchasing from informal food markets.

The report is based on data collected on 518 donor-funded food safety initiatives in Sub-Saharan Africa between 2010 and 2017, and interviews with almost 200 experts.

“Donor food safety investments are overwhelmingly focused on supporting overseas market access, trade, and formal markets rather than on the public health problem of foodborne illness,” says the report.

Read more at...https://www.commodity-port.com/food-safety-projects-in-africa-benefiting-donor-nations/