By Mathieu Champoux

“Safer food, better health”

World Food Safety Day on 7 June 2022 will draw attention to and mobilize action to prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks and improve human health.

This year’s theme, “Safer food, better health”, highlights the role that safe, nutritional food plays in ensuring human health and well-being and calls for a set of specific actions to make food safer.

The United Nations General Assembly established World Food Safety Day in 2018 to raise awareness of this important issue. WHO and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) jointly facilitate the observance of World Food Safety Day, in collaboration with members from the States and other stakeholders.

Food safety is a shared responsibility between governments, producers and consumers. We all have a role to play; whether we grow, process, transport, store, sell, buy, prepare or serve food, food safety is in all our hands. And if we work together, we can all help achieve safer food for better health.

Kersia makes food safety its #1 concern

Food safety is our core field of expertise, recognized all over the world.

Food safety saves lives. It is not only a crucial component of food security, but it also plays a vital role in reducing foodborne diseases. Foodborne diseases affect 1 in 10 people worldwide each year. There are over 200 of these diseases – some mild, but others deadly. The burden of such illness falls most heavily on the poor and on the young. In addition, foodborne illness is responsible for 420 000 preventable deaths every year.

Our mission: Inventing a food safe world

Our ambition: Being your trusted partner for food safety

100% dedicated to food safety, we intend to lead the way as the world benchmark operator and most trusted partner to our customers.

Discover 5 employees across the Kersia Group and their opinion on the importance of food safety

Each weekday we will post one of 5 profiles of employees who are constantly working to ensure that all programs and products available to our customers ensure food safety throughout the food industry.

JOHN HOLAH

Principal Corporate Scientist FS & PH

Kersia’s active involvement with the food industry’s food safety technical working groups ensures that we always understand the food safety hazards and quality issues that our customers are facing.

MARTIN GARLAND

R&D Chemistry Director UK/ROW

For me, Food Safety is Applied Science for a Sustainable and Secure Impact, From Animal to Atmosphere, From Farm to Fork.

JIM NICOL

International Sales Director

Exporting to over ninety countries all around the world, Kersia offers a range of products, programmes, solutions and support to help the farmer achieve a healthy environment for safe food production.

OSCAR CIRUEGEDA

Food Industries & Cleaning Contractors Market Manager

Working for food security is doing it for a common good for society.

DAVID LESSARD

Coordinator/Trainer for Food Services

We have a responsibility to our customers to ensure that they can prepare and offer food in a sanitized and safe environment for their customers. When we visit our customers, we adopt a 360° approach. We check that all the equipment is functional and that the dosage of the products is adequate. We control cleaning and sanitizing procedures, their understanding by staff and their application.

1^ST Challenge: Ensuring Food Safety

Through the leading role it occupies within the food chain, Food Service has an obligation to ensure food safety.

Our role: Our comprehensive programs help implement rigorous hygiene, sanitation and disinfection practices. These include the use of appropriate products at proper dosages, the cleanliness of work surfaces, equipment, work environments and personal hygiene standards for workers. The expertise enjoyed by our clients thus ensures the safety of their own clients and preserves their reputation.

2^nd Challenge: Workforce and training

The various Food Service sectors are characterized by a shortage of workers, high staff turnover and the hiring of low-skilled workers.

Our role: We ensure food safety by standardizing methods (training, monitoring, information) and transferring knowledge, even in the absence of our specialists (posters, video clips, web resources). In addition, while the use of domestic products sometimes characterizes this sector, we recommend the use of high-performance products that are safe for users and suitable for intense use or frequency.

3^rd Challenge: Productivity

Food Service is a sector under constant pressure requiring high productivity and efficiency. In a sector characterized by very low profit margins and very tight budgets, you must produce excellent results quickly.

Our role: Our hygiene and sanitation programs can prescribe the most suitable products to obtain rapid results in compliance with the strictest hygiene standards while minimizing their environmental footprint.

4^th Challenge: Regulations

The regulatory environment is constantly changing, and Food Service sector clients have few or no experts in the field. Clients are therefore struggling to keep up to date with government standards and recommendations.

Our role: Our regulatory and R&D specialists communicate the most current standards to our client specialists. Their collaboration helps establish best practices. Thus, our sales and technical teams act as hygiene and sanitation “coaches” with clients, with both decision-makers and users of the solutions.

5^th Challenge: Business continuity

Due to its critical role in the food chain, the Food Service sector is characterized by strong peak periods and the devastating impact of a service interruption on their profitability.

Our role: Our call centre can make a precise diagnosis and assign the most qualified specialists from our team composed of representatives, food safety technicians and food technicians specializing in repairs. They act quickly to ensure the continuity of their operations. Our excellent response times allow resolving a situation before it deteriorates.