Se estima que cada año enferman en el mundo unas 600 millones de personas —casi 1 de cada 10 habitantes, lo cual representa un estimado de 19 millones en la región de los países miembros del OIRSA— por ingerir alimentos contaminados y que 420 000 mueren a nivel mundial por esta misma causa, con la consiguiente pérdida de 33 millones de años de vida ajustados en función de la discapacidad. Todos los años se pierden US$ 110 000 millones en productividad y gastos médicos a causa de los alimentos insalubres en los países de ingresos bajos y medianos.
Al ejercer una presión excesiva en los sistemas de atención de la salud, las enfermedades transmitidas por los alimentos (ETA) obstaculizan el desarrollo económico y social, y perjudican a las economías nacionales, al turismo y al comercio.
In food safety, OIRSA supports its member countries in strengthening sanitary measures to ensure safety based on risk through the implementation of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) principles and their prerequisite programs, including Good Agricultural Practices, Good Livestock Practices, and Good Manufacturing Practices (GAP, GLP, GMP), Standard Operating Procedures and Sanitization Procedures (SOP, SOPs), biosecurity, among others, to prevent, reduce, or eliminate the presence of pesticide residues, drugs and veterinary medicines, environmental contaminants, toxins, or pathogenic organisms in food products, to protect people's lives and health and facilitate food trade.
Furthermore:
- Harmonization of food safety standards.
- Establishment of equivalences between trading partners.
- Strengthening the analytical capacity of laboratories based on ISO/IEC 17015:2017.
- Implementation of control, inspection, and approval procedures for tolerance limits of contaminants in food products, based on risk analysis, due to the presence of bacteria (Salmonella, Campylobacter, E. coli O157:H7, etc.), viruses, parasites, prions, chemicals, including natural toxins such as mycotoxins, pesticide residues, veterinary drugs, and heavy metals.
- Technical assistance and capacity building for member countries.
- Support for surveillance and monitoring programs.
- Risk communication to strengthen national agri-food safety systems throughout the entire chain.