Food Safety: From Farm to Plate

Have you ever stopped to consider the journey your food takes from the farm to your plate?

- Rajiv Ambat

World Food Safety Day, observed by the World Health Organization (WHO) on June 7th, prompts us to do just that. It aims to draw attention to and inspire action to help prevent, detect, and manage foodborne risks. According to WHO, every day, on average, 1.6 million people get sick globally due to unsafe food, contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites, or chemical substances.

But in today's world, food safety does not stop at just protecting ourselves from contamination from bacteria or viruses. Food safety is also about ensuring the food we consume, does not pose long-term health risks. This means paying attention not just to immediate health dangers, but also to the long-term and cumulative effects of food additives, trans fats, farming practices, and other substances commonly found in modern processed foods.

Food Storage & Safety

We all refrigerate leftover food to prevent it from going stale, allowing us to use it for another day. Our refrigerators are also essential for storing vegetables, fruits, milk, dairy products, meat, fish, and more. Keeping food at a low temperature helps prevent the growth of harmful bacteria and other microorganisms.

But what is the ideal temperature for refrigeration?

To preserve food effectively, the refrigerator temperature should be below 4 degrees Celsius, while the freezer temperature should be below -18 degrees Celsius. It is also important that the refrigerator should be clean and free from food spills to prevent cross-contamination from one food item to another.

How do you know if the food is safe to eat?