National Strategy for Food Safety 2017-2022

This National Strategy for Food Safety 2017-2022 is a nationwide sectoral document aiming at ensuring food safety to the State of Palestine by building a comprehensive system based on optimal international standards, as well as scientific procedures and rules to monitor and ensure it, in addition to the creation of teamwork to promote all components and branches of public health services relevant to food safety. The main goals of the Food safety monitoring authorities - namely Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Health, Ministry of National Economy, and Ministry of Local Government/ Municipalities - are (i) protect the health and rights of the Palestinian consumer; (ii) ensure public health; (iii) ensure fair practices in food trade by enforcing an effective and comprehensive system on foods along the entirety of the food chain, from the farm to the table; (iv) encourage investment; and (v) meet international needs and standards. To achieve the aforementioned goals, the document envisages the following 5 Strategic Objectives (I) harmonize Palestinian legislation with national needs and relevant international standards and frameworks; (ii) improve performance of food safety control authorities; (iii) promote control over the food chain within the framework of national legislation; (iv) enable food safety regulators to utilize optimal means and scientific guides in risk management relevant to food safety; and (v) promote work in accordance with relevant international standards and coordinate and cooperate with relevant international organizations.
To help eliminate hunger and food insecurity, the whole Strategy seeks to ensure access of all citizens to safe food by focusing on a number of principles, most importantly “from the farm to the table”.
In order to make agriculture more productive and sustainable, the actions will be directed to (i) improve agricultural techniques, varieties and breeds utilized by farmers; (ii) limit spread of diseases and epidemics that infect plants and animals; (iii) develop agricultural and veterinary guidance and research, risk avoidance, agricultural insurance, agricultural credit and agricultural control services; (iv) improve cooperation, exchange of knowledge and partnerships between organizations working in the agricultural sector so as to enhance results-based management and implementation of the national strategy for the agricultural sector.
To enhance more inclusive and effective agricultural and food systems, the document proposes that (i) quality and safety of locally produced agricultural and animal products match international best standards and enjoy high competitiveness in national and international markets; (ii) costs of animal and plant agricultural production become more competitive; (iii) agricultural marketing services, including wholesale markets, enjoy competent administration and appropriate infrastructure; and (iv) agricultural sector organizations implement policies and procedures to ensure health and plant health in accordance with market requirements.
For increasing the resilience of livelihoods to disasters, the Strategy focuses on the health issue by calling for (i) limiting the risk of infection with infectious and communicable diseases; and (ii) development of health monitoring systems in different fields.
As for Governance, two are the main actors (1) the Ministry of Agriculture and (2) the Ministry of Health. The first one shall guarantee that the agricultural legislation is complementary and supportive of sustainable agricultural development; while the Ministry of Health will (i) promote governance and performance of the health sector; (ii) create a Palestinian Council for Food Safety to work on the development of a comprehensive program where achievement of internal reform on food safety and health in accordance with Codex Alimentarius and international standards is a priority; and (iii) the Palestinian Council for Food Safety, in turn, will work on the creation of a Consultative Scientific Committee for Food Safety aiming at the collection of data and analysis of information relevant to food safety with the view of supporting risk management processes.