Researchers representing six food safety projects presented their findings at a workshop in Addis Ababa, which focused on Ethiopia's health and economic burden of foodborne diseases and the challenges and opportunities for improving food safety. Their discoveries were the culmination of the Pull-Push, CAGED, EXCAM, FOCAL, ENSURE and TARTARE research projects. The workshop was co-organized by the Global One Health initiative (GOHi).
The overarching goal of the TARTARE project was to efficiently and sustainably reduce foodborne disease mortality and morbidity by developing and implementing a risk-based framework for food safety management and resource allocation in low- and middle-income countries to increase equitable consumption of a safe, affordable and nutritious diet, using Ethiopia as a model.
The projects also identified critical knowledge gaps and research priorities for food safety in the country, including the need for additional investment from both the public and private sectors and creating consumer awareness to drive improvements in food safety and quality. The presentations focused on thematic areas, evidence generation, foodborne disease burden and prevalence, understanding food safety hazards and risks, modeling, food safety intervention, capacity building and stakeholder engagement.
This workshop also created a platform for a continued discussion on significant food safety challenges in Ethiopia and collaborations among government agencies, industries, research organizations, donors, academia and development partners.