Not All That Looks Appealing Is Safe To Consume – FDA

The principal regulatory officer of the Tema Region Food and Drugs Authority -FDA madam Gloria Anowa Ackon has urged the public to be mindful of what they consume in the body because not all that looks appealing is safe to consume she made this known when speaking with Ohene Addo  on Plan B Fm’s morning show Nkosuonsem as the Food and Drugs Authority celebrates World Food Day on the theme: “Safer Food, Better Health” to create the awareness of unsafe foods and the dangers about it.

Madam Gloria Anowa Ackon stressed that the preparation of food in an unhygienic place poses a grave danger of food poisoning to unsuspecting consumers and as such people needed to be mindful of where they patronised food.

“Before you buy food from the street check the environment, check if the vendor has acquired the license from FDA and also check the appearance of the vendor if he/she neatly dressed” she added.

Statistics from the WHO indicate that unsafe food containing harmful bacteria, viruses, parasites, or chemical substances, causes more than 200 diseases ranging from diarrhoea to cancers.

It said an estimated 600 million- almost one in 10 people in the world – fall ill after eating contaminated food and 420, 000 die every year, resulting in the loss of 33 million healthy life years. $110 billion is lost each year in productivity and medical expenses resulting from unsafe food in low- and middle-income countries.

Even though there is no data locally, the chain of food safety should be a cause of concern to everyone.

It is there critical to join calls for the country’s safety regulating authorities to act promptly to ensure the elimination of practices that are detrimental to public food safety in Ghana.