This post is written by Kelley Cormier, Food Safety Division Chief, Center for Nutrition, RFS, USAID.

Welcome to Food Safety Month on Agrilinks! The launch of Food Safety Month kicks off this year’s celebration of World Food Safety Day 2022 at USAID. While still adjusting to a world navigating a pandemic, we are simultaneously closely monitoring how Russia’s war on Ukraine is affecting poverty, hunger and malnutrition. The global food crisis demands our attention. With availability, access and utilization of nutritious and safe food constrained, especially among the most vulnerable, we must not lose sight of how safe food contributes to mitigating the effects of the crisis.

The U.S. Government Global Food Security Strategy 2022-2026 signals the importance of food safety for food security. The current situation calls for action at multiple levels. Some of these actions are highlighted in the World Health Organization’s Call to Action for World Food Safety Day 2022. From policymakers (local and national), to businesses, to consumers, to donors — all have a role to play in ensuring the availability, access and utilization of safe and nutritious foods for all.

To commemorate World Food Safety Day 2022, this month on Agrilinks, we will be sharing a series of blog posts and resources from our food safety partners, featuring examples from the field and actionable recommendations for the development community. We will shine a spotlight on the linkages between the dimensions of food security — availability, access and utilization — and food safety. Blog posts will span topics related to food safety practices among micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises; traceability; reducing postharvest loss and food waste; food safety policy; wastewater surveillance; and much more. For an excellent overview of the issues, see the February 2022 Agrilinks blog “Food Safety: A Pillar of Food Security.”

Join us on June 23, 2022, at 9 a.m. ET for a conversation with the private sector and research community to explore evidence-driven approaches to addressing food safety risks throughout the food system in ways that increase food security. We will wrap up Food Safety Month with a blog that curates the posts throughout the month.

Please bookmark this post and follow @Agrilinks and @FeedtheFuture on Twitter to see the latest. If you would like to submit a post or resource to Agrilinks or share what you are doing for World Food Safety Day 2022 and beyond, please reach out to [email protected]. Don't forget to register for our June 23rd webinar Food Safety Approaches to Improve Food Security!