Food Safety Professionals Play Essential Role in Protecting Consumers
According to a press release published on the Business Wire and endorsed by the Institute for Credentialing Excellence, advancement in food science and technology has dramatically changed the food chain system.
A statistic released by the United Nations claims that total food production in the United States alone went from 287 million metric tons in 1965 to more than 674 million metric tons in 2010. Typically, more food means more risk of food-borne illnesses, but the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 48 million people in America got sick in 2011 from food-borne illnesses, a significant decrease from the total of 78 million cases in 1999.
What caused this extreme shift? Improved regulation and oversight from food safety professionals likely prevented almost 30 million citizens from becoming sick due to food-borne illnesses. These professionals monitor the food supply chain to ensure that they are not exposed to conditions that lead to food-borne illness epidemics.
Food safety professionals are trained to enforce rigorous standards set by national agencies such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as state and local governments. Organizations such as the National Registry of Food Safety Professionals (NRFSP) can help uphold regulations by maintaining certification programs for food safety professionals, ensuring they have the knowledge to assess whether ingredients, processes, and facilities are safe.
“Food safety professionals are vital in making sure what we eat is safe every step along the way,” says NRFSP CEO Larry Lunch. “Armed with knowledge of federal, state, and local standards and regulations, certified food safety professionals help food producers and retail managers and handlers avoid spreading potentially catastrophic diseases.”
In 2011, the FDA was tasked with creating and implementing new standards and safety systems through the U.S. Food Safety Modernization Act. This act has allowed the agency to shift its focus from responding to contamination to preventing it, and education and enforcement systems have been updated to keep up with food protection standards.
In conclusion, food safety professionals play a vital role in protecting consumers from nasty food-borne illnesses. Through the enforcement of strict standards created by agencies such as the FDA, citizens can feel safe knowing that they are protected against these diseases. Certification programs are essential to saving lives; this is why we at Newslow and Associates offer food safety workshops, consulting, and on-site training. If you are interested in learning how Newslow can help you business make safer food chain decisions, please give us a call today at (407)290-2754.
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