Food Defense System, a Compact Strategy to Combat Global Food Terrorism Issue

Food is one of the most prominent vector to capture human beings and leading to grave from centuries. Food terrorism means the deliberate contamination of certain components of food supply chain whose ultimate purpose to induce physical, economical, psychological, harm and create terror and anxiety situations among consumers. Under these circumstances, an effective strategy of food defense system to overcome this situation looks to be decent and practicable. Awareness about food defense is not only essential for consumers but also have same worth and value for food producers, manufacturers, as well as for food processors. Nowadays, Implementation of food defense from plow to plate, farm to fork, and boat to throat is indispensable to avoid any serious and catastrophic incident. Food safety and food terrorism are far different from each other as food safety mainly concern the hygienic problems arises due to pathogenic food borne microbes, viruses and their proliferation’s in food chain while food terrorism related to food fraud, adulteration and intentionally creating nasty and awful situations to cause danger to health, economy, business, social trends. There are many examples that are present about food terrorism that depicts loses of human lives, economy, and infrastructure of organizations. Campaign about food terrorism and its aftermath on global level is need of time to create somehow among peoples of this world.

In this era, that also considers the epoch of miracles in the meaning of innovations, newness, and discoveries whose ultimate target is the facileness, easiness, comfortability of mankind in this world. But, unfortunately, certain malicious groups, activities, and agendas that are threat to the humanity. One of them is food terrorism that target the human beings through their native resource ‘’the food’’. Food terrorism is a ‘’deliberate action of contamination and adulteration of certain substances to the extent that it proves harmful, injurious and lethal for human health’’. To cope with food terrorism and food fraud a term "Food Defense’’ is introduced on global scale. Food defense is relatively a new strategy on world level as compared to the U.S.A from where it is originated. Food defense is a ‘’term used to describe activities associated with the protecting the nation’s food supply from deliberate or intentional acts of adulterations or tempering’’ (FDA 2014). Food terrorism is opposite to the food defense that depicts the mean and beguile activities to dodge not only ultimate consumers but also whole framework which involve in the handling, processing, supplying, evaluating, assessing, managing and control the entire food supply chain. It also arise the questions about performance of regulatory and administrating bodies on such issues. Food fraud that is also a type of food terrorism practices mostly at domestic level where people can easily enticed by different mesmerizing applications related to food practices. In this scenario, food defense system protects not only food supply chain but also plays a vital role In food safety. It is the security system to protect the food supply chain from tempering of foods. In food safety various comprehensive and compact methods such as HACCP, GHP, GMP, TQM, VACCP, TACCP, FSMS, ISO-22000 are now t considers crucial for assuredness of safe foods. Implementation of these methods not only protect food premises from food unintentional contamination but also minimize the risks of and food terrorism. Consumers expect that the food supply that is available to them is safe and secure from any abuse. Keeping food and food related articles under safe and secure conditions up to ultimate delivery to consumers is main motive of food defense system. There are many forms of food terrorism that are used and there is a specific purpose or target. Literature depicts that people usually indulge in such activities to earn extra profit, to defame the specific organization or individual, to revenge, to create uneasiness’, to destroy the economy and to create terror among community through death. To tackle all these situations there must be a suitable food defense plan. Its very important to devise how food defense plan is prepared according to food industry type and possible hazards and risks. Although a lot of research and new techniques and regulations are introducing by relative authorities such as BRI, Codex Alimentarious, FDA, WTO, WHO. U.S Food and Drug Administration in this case has introduced many protection and mitigation strategies to combat these issues. it’s not only the duty of these governmental, non-governmental organizations to think about their eradication source but also food manufacturing companies, even all those involved in entire food supply chain must be construct a solid plan to chase all these issues that may lead this world to fire land. Food security is now a mostly debating issues as its relate foods. The foundation of food security is based upon several factors in the forms of Threats and risks. One of these is food terrorism that is most critical one. If we consider just food supply chain, it will be astonishing to know that still in this epoch where technology is part and parcel of every field of life, but there are so many ‘’theft door’’ through which anyone can enter and destroy the whole system. Similarly in case of food facility, where production of products commence there must be specific design to evaluate and analysis of sample products at every stage of food processing operations to ensure the quality and safety. As it is mentioned with briefly and comprehensive facts and figures that global food supply chain requires unique and ideal systems to overcome these issues.

My name is mahtab shoukat. i'm post graduation student in food technology. its my passion to express my creativity and thinking through writing articles.