The Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization on Food Quality and Safety: A Primer and Examples

Abstract The United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) perform several activities that are crucial to all countries in their food quality and safety work. Both organizations have extensive programs in this area and many of them are carried out jointly. This article provides a primer on what these agencies do and why they are important in food quality and safety, and some aspects of the field of nutrition. It describes joint FAO and WHO efforts in food and nutrition, and some of FAO’s individual work in areas of agriculture affecting nutritional health. A high priority is the work of FAO and WHO and the Codex Alimentarius Commission. The relationship of FAO and WHO’ s work on food problems to the World Trade Organization and its systems to resolve food-related international trade problems are described. Challenges in coordination between different UN bodies are also discussed.