Food safety standards in the Asia-Pacific region need to be comprehensively overhauled, a UN Food & Agricultural Organisation (FAO) and World Health Organisation (WHO) conference has advised visiting delegates.


Recent food and livestock-related disease outbreaks are “symptomatic of food safety systems not working properly and of the lack of integrated mechanisms in the region – and often within individual countries – to predict potential outbreaks and organise rapid responses to prevent them,” said an FAO note on proceedings. The meeting was held at Seremban, Malaysia.


The FAO, the WHO and the Office International des Épizooties have launched a comprehensive database on animal health issues worldwide, covering all livestock. Fore more details, click here.