Medidas de Gestao das Pescarias Marinhas e Aquicultura 2019 The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2018 | Page 169

THE STATE OF WORLD FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE 2018 The bivalve mollusc production industry has grown, from nearly 1 million tonnes in 1950 to 16.1 million tonnes in 2015. In view of this rapid growth, together with changes in water conditions, FAO and WHO (2018) have produced technical guidance for the development of bivalve mollusc sanitation programmes, as requested by the 2017 International Conference on Molluscan Shellfish Safety. This guidance is mainly intended for primary production of bivalves for consumption live or raw, and primarily considers general requirements and microbiological hazards. feasibilit y of a single repositor y of loss scenarios and loss reduction options to inform the development of solutions to food loss scenarios at targeted points of the supply chain in fisheries and aquaculture. Consumer protection Fisheries’ contribution to food securit y and public health can be compromised when food safet y is not well understood and controlled throughout the fisheries and aquaculture supply chains. Given the growing complexit y of these chains (due to factors such as increased value addition demands, climate change impacts and trade globalization), internationally recognized frameworks for ensuring food safet y in the international context are extremely important. In the fisheries sector, these include Article 11 of the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, g uiding post-har vest practices and trade; the Codex Alimentarius standards and codes of practice (w w w.fao.org/fao-who- codexalimentarius/standards); and the W TO Agreements on the Application of Sanitar y and Phytosanitar y Measures and Technical Barriers to Trade, which set out the basic rules for food safet y standards. In support of food safet y, FAO provides scientific advice jointly with W HO through established expert committees, expert meetings and ad hoc consultations. In food safet y management, FAO has worked closely in the past two years with key partners such as UNEP, the Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection (GESA MP) 18 and academics in a global response to the possible food safet y threat of microplastics and nanoplastics in fish and fish products (see “Selected ocean pollution concerns”, below), providing a set of recommendations and listing research needs (Lusher, Hollman and Mendoza-Hill, 2017). Over 50 percent of fisher y production for food comes from aquaculture, and some food safet y and public health issues are specific to this sector. Misuse of antimicrobials in many parts of the world is recognized as the key driver of the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (A MR). A MR currently causes around 700 000 global deaths annually, and the number could reach 10 million by 2050 (O’Neill, 2014). FAO is working closely with the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and W HO in a tripartite response to the global threat of A MR (FAO, OIE and W HO, 2010). The Codex Alimentarius Commission (2017) has recently updated maximum residue limits and risk management recommendations for residues of veterinar y drugs in foods. Owing to concerns about the impact of climate change, Codex committees have given special importance to the evaluation of toxins in recent years. In response to a request from Codex for scientific advice on this topic, FAO and W HO (2016) jointly produced the technical paper Toxicity equivalence factors for marine biotoxins associated with bivalve molluscs. Ciguatoxin causes between 10 000 and 50 000 food-borne illnesses annually (Lehane, 2000). As requested by the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods, FAO and WHO are currently planning a risk assessment of ciguatoxins, with a view to establishing a maximum permissible level for the toxin and agreeing on standard analytical methods for ciguatoxin detection and quantification, to provide the basis for routine analysis and surveillance. At the national level, FAO’s multidisciplinar y teams provide technical support to governments in developing effective national food safet y frameworks. Due consideration is given to 18  GESAMP sponsors are IMO, FAO, UNESCO-IOC, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United Nations, UNEP and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). | 153 |