Safe food is essential to human health and well-being. Safe food is one of the most important elements to ensure good health. Unsafe food is the cause of many diseases and contributes to other forms of poor health, such as poor growth and development, micronutrient deficiencies, and non-communicable or communicable diseases. Globally, 1 in 10 people are affected by foodborne diseases, but most of them can be prevented, and our behavior and the way we structure our food systems and how we organize food supply chains can prevent infectious and toxic hazards, the pathogens diseases (bacteria, viruses, parasites), chemical waste, biotoxins, and other harmful or dangerous substances from reaching our tables. We must transform our diets for the benefit of our health. We must do this in a sustainable way. Food systems policy-makers, practitioners, and investors must reorient their activities to increase the sustainable production and consumption of safe foods to improve health outcomes and to make safe and healthy diets accessible to all.
Agricultural, food, commercial, and industrial development policies in place must promote food safety, and systemic changes for better health will lead to availability of safer food, which is a critical enabler of human development in the long term, and a prerequisite for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.