One Health for Food Safety, Food Security and Sustainable Food Production
To meet population growth challenges, sustainable food production and environmental stewardship is paramount and will require a One Health approach.
Globally, our society faces an enormous challenge to feed, house and provide a healthy life for the growing human population while preserving the environment and natural resources for the benefit of future generations. To meet these challenges, sustainable food production and environmental stewardship is paramount and will require a One Health approach. One Health is the concept that the health of humans, animals, and the environment are inextricably linked. This approach can be applied to food safety, sustainable food production and environmental stewardship by bringing together interdisciplinary teams to create a One Health network to address these challenges. To achieve food security for the global population, preserve natural resources and improve health through safeguarding food safety, there is a need for increased awareness among academics, producers, consumers, and government agencies in the following topics: (1) One Health Initiatives for sustainable food systems, food safety and food security, (2) the history of food safety in the United States, (3) food safety in the 21st c and the need for a new perspective, and (4) food security in the 21st century through the lens of disasters and transboundary disease. These topics cover the need for incorporating One Health education into curricula for scientific, engineering, and humanities programs. The goal is to build capacity in One Health competencies in established networks that will work toward improving public health, food safety, and sustainable agriculture. These networks will do so by establishing new perspectives on interactions among plants, animals, and humans and recognizing the threat of disasters and transboundary diseases to food security.
The interface of sustainable agriculture, food safety and food security
The global human population is expected to reach 9.7 billion people by the year 2050. As the human population continues to grow, we face increasing challenges to ensure that people will have access to safe, nutritious and healthy food. By the year 2050, food production will need to increase by more than 50% of 2012 production levels to meet demand. As incomes in developing countries continue to rise and living conditions improve, demand for meat, dairy and specialty crops such as fruits, nuts and vegetables has increased. Likewise, consumers in developed countries have developed preferences for specialized products that are marketed as organic, fair-trade or locally grown. Increased demand for food has already strained natural resources, resulting in soil erosion, loss of biodiverse landscapes and pollution of the environment all around the world. This development present new challenges in food safety and sustainable food production. Additionally, disasters and transboundary disease pose an enormous threat to food safety and security. Natural disasters such as fires and floods create routes through which pathogens, chemicals, heavy metals and other pollutants can contaminate the air, water and environment in which we live and grow food. Globalization and easy access to rapid travel has made transboundary diseases a top concern for food safety and food security. Transboundary diseases are highly contagious animal diseases that cause a high morbidity and mortality in animals. Outbreaks of transboundary disease are economically devastating for farmers and have a significant impact on the cost and availability of food. Sometimes these diseases can be zoonotic and pose a public health risk. There is a need for a holistic and systematic approach to solving these problems by assembling multidisciplinary teams composed of experts from academic, industry and government agencies. These teams must work to engage the public in outreach and education that will help consumers understand the importance and complexity of ensuring animal health, food safety, food security, and sustainable food production.
There are numerous challenges to addressing food safety and food security in the 21st century.. In this review, we discuss the importance of a One Health approach in food safety and security and threats food safety and food security face. The topics discussed aim to highlight the diversity and complexity of the issues facing food safety, food security, and sustainable food production for consideration by policy makers, academics and industry experts.
Conclusions
Global food safety and security faces numerous challenges as the human population continues to grow. In the 21st century, challenges will continue to center on increasing food security globally with food that is safe and nutritious. While there are a range of topics that are essential in this category, this review focuses on microbial contamination of produce, natural disasters and transboundary disease. Such challenges continue to be a threat to food safety and security and are in need of continued discussion and awareness. One Health has the potential to be a holistic and systematic approach to solving these problems. To accomplish this, One Health education and outreach are necessary for the public as well as policymakers. One Health curricula in agriculture and food systems education programs can be a way to engage the next generation in farming, agriculture and improving public health through food safety and security. The One Health approach will enable these programs to acquire the information and develop the skills needed for cooperation, teamwork, and communication that will be necessary to address these challenges.
Farmers, consumers, researchers, government agencies and consumer advocacy groups play an important role in influencing food safety policies and sustainable food production practices. One Health practitioners need to bring awareness to these stakeholders and provide them with information that allows them to make data-driven decisions about food and food practices. These actors also should be encouraged to enact policy and guidelines that protect food safety and safeguard environmental sustainability. To make progress toward finding solutions to these challenges, we must continue to use foundational scientific research to inform regulations and practices and advance technological applications to increase food production, improve sustainable practices, and assess environmental impact. These activities must be supported through funding innovative research and collaborations that provide new information, approaches, and perspectives in food safety, food security and sustainable food production. Additionally, research, policy, and outreach efforts need to benefit the economic well-being of farmers so that they can continue to produce food required to feed 9.7 billion humans. The increased demand for safe foods and agricultural products has the potential to globally improve food security, nutrition and economic well-being. Innovative agriculture practices and technologies are needed to ensure natural resources are available for future generations.
This article was written by Sara N. Garcia, Bennie I. Osburn and Michele T. Jay-Russell