A TWO-DAY food safety risk assessment training and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) workshop ended yesterday at Cara Lodge Hotel, in Middle Street, Georgetown, the aim of which was to impact on the export potential of agro-industries in Guyana.

The programme was co-sponsored by the Ministry of Health, the United States Department of Agriculture, Washington State University (WSU) and Rajkumar Apiary and Honey Works.
Delivering the feature address at the opening, Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr. Shamdeo Persaud noted that Guyana is heavily dependent on agriculture and is one of the major producers of basic food items for the Caribbean region.
In the area of food safety, he highlighted, as two important challenges which must be emphasised, ensuring that foods provided to consumers are free from all agents that can cause diseases and making sure they are healthy and can help certain infections, especially non-communicable diseases.
Persaud added that Guyana is still heavily affected by food borne diseases and that, a few years ago, a survey revealed that some of the major pathogens which cause such were, indeed, present.
However, he alluded to a new Public Health Act which has already been drafted and is presently with a team for editing to be presented to the Attorney General and, subsequently, the National Assembly. According to the CMO, this law will repeal the existing one which is antiquated.
Persaud pointed to the importance of putting all the relevant systems in place for food safety and urged those in attendance at the forum to be very vigilant.
Meanwhile, Director of the Food and Drug Analyst Department, in the Health Ministry, Ms. Marilyn Collins disclosed that agriculture accounts for 32 percent of Guyana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), 30 percent of its employment and 40 percent of its export earnings.

ESSENTIAL
She said it is, therefore, essential for Guyana to enhance the competitiveness of its food products by promoting value-added in terms of both quality and safety.
She underlined the necessity of investing in training and other initiatives in order to assure maximum food safety.
Speaking on the U.S. Food Safety Modernisation Act, Food Safety Specialist and Associate Professor in the School of Food Science of WSU, Dr. Karen Killinger reiterated the need for various agencies to work together to promote food safety worldwide.
She said, in the U.S., one in every six persons suffer from food borne illnesses each year and some 48 million people in the U.S. are so affected, accounting for 128,000 hospitalisations and 3,000 deaths.
Killinger identified the causes of those illnesses and outlined various systems of dealing with food safety issues.
The programme also featured several other presentations, including by Dr. Richard Dougherty, also from the School of Food Science of the WSU.
Among those who attended were public health officers and employees.
Those who participated in the two-day workshop at Cara Lodge are slated to go on a field visit today, of different local food packaging and processing plants.