The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has taken more steps towards becoming one of the world’s most proactive regional organisations in the food sector.


At a recent meeting in Rangoon, Burma (Myanmar), ASEAN ministers set up a taskforce to coordinate member countries’ fight against bird flu and a trust find to keep the region free of foot-and-mouth disease.


They also approved an additional 86 maximum residue limits for eight pesticides used on vegetables, fruits, and cash crops. And they agreed that ASEAN agencies should develop a blueprint for helping rice producers deal with water scarcity, global warming and labour shortages.