Strategic Plan for Food Safety

StrategicDirection 3 Leadership25Provide leadership and assistin the development andstrengthening of risk-based,integrated national systemsfor food safetyand technicalassistanceIn order to detect, prevent and manage the public health risks associated with contaminatedfood or diseased animals entering the food-chain, countries need comprehensive systemscovering activities in many sectors, from primary production to the consumer. Effective andresilient national food safety systems are crucial for all other relevant work, as they form thebasis for activities to reduce food-related public health threats and therefore also enable MemberStates to meet their obligations under the IHR. Coordinating health systems across varioussectors —particularly the agricultural, animal and human health sectors— facilitates sustainabilityand will allow gaps and overlaps along the entire food-chain to be identified and managed.While the detailed components and priorities of a food safety system will vary from country tocountry, systems need to comprise the following key components: