U.S – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are launching the Food Safety for Food Security Partnership, to enhance the availability and trade of healthy food items in low- and middle-income countries in order to combat hunger, malnutrition, and poverty.
The program, also known as FS4FS, calls for a U.S$15 million investment over a five-year period which will enable the partnership to provide technical assistance, knowledge management, and digital tools to strengthen the policy and regulatory environments in participating countries.
According to USDA Foreign Agricultural Service Administrator Daniel Whitley, during the U.S.-Africa Leaders’ Summit, many African heads of state reached out to USDA for help in developing science- and risk-based measures and standards to ensure the supply and safety of their countries’ food.
“Through the Food Safety for Food Security Partnership, we will work together to address these needs, which are vital to ensuring greater access to safe and nutritious food across Africa.
“Strong food safety delivered through policies and institutions, as well as farmer, consumer, and industry readiness, are critical to transforming agri-food systems,” said Daniel.
FS4FS intends to promote the development of sanitary and phytosanitary systems in Feed the Future countries in order to enhance trade, food safety, and security.
Through capacity building, the alliance will address long-standing impediments to participation in the food system.
By eliminating foodborne illnesses and trade restrictions, the group’s activities will aid in achieving the world’s food security goals.
“As the world continues to face an unprecedented global food crisis, the United States is addressing the root causes of hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. Through the new Food Safety for Food Security partnership, we will build on Feed the Future’s successes and work with countries around the world to increase access to safe and nutritious foods and unlock trade opportunities,” said USAID Bureau of Resilience and Food Security Acting Assistant to the Administrator Dina Esposito.
As the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative, Feed the Future works to give families and communities in some of the world’s poorest countries the freedom and opportunity to lift themselves out of food insecurity and malnutrition.
Led by the U.S. Agency for International Development, the initiative draws on the agricultural, trade, investment, development, and policy resources and expertise of multiple U.S. federal departments and agencies to support its mission.
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