Business | General
Food safety expert urges proper labelling
A food safety expert yesterday urged UAE and international food manufacturers to strictly adhere to proper labelling of shelf life on food products.
- By Cleofe Maceda, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:05 February 27, 2008
Dubai: A food safety expert yesterday urged UAE and international food manufacturers to strictly adhere to proper labelling of shelf life on food products.
Dr Jochen Zoller, president of Intertek's global food service division, warned that food-borne illnesses are both counter-productive and costly to a company.
In the United States alone, Zoller said foodborne illness costs companies about $35 to $40 billion a year on medical expenses and loss of productivity, as a lot of people are afflicted with the major pathogens each year.
"Economic problems arise when you say 30 per cent of the people have a food-borne illness at least once or twice a year because that means they stay at home one day at least or two days from work," Zoller said at the first day of the Dubai International Food Safety Conference.
Held alongside Gulfood 2008, the conference gathers food safety experts and specialists from around the globe to discuss food safety issues.
Food safety is considered a global concern for both the developed and developing world.
According to Gulfood data, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in the US estimates that food-borne diseases cause 325,000 hospitalisations and 5,000 deaths every year.
In South Asia, about one million children under five years of age die each year from eating contaminated food and water.
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