The COPAIA - Pan American Commission on Food Safety was established in 2001 on a proposal submitted by the Brazilian delegation and approved by the Ministers of Health and Agriculture of the Americas at the 12th Inter-American Meetings, at Ministerial Level, on Health and Agriculture (RIMSA 12). Its establishment was prompted by the increasingly frequent outbreaks of food-transmitted diseases, the expansion of world food trade, and the advances in the food production and processing technology. COPAIA is a collective, hemispheric effort by PAHO Member States, aimed at arriving at a clear understanding of the situation and at finding solutions for reducing health risks posed by food.
As pointed out by PAHO Director Dr. George Alleyne on the occasion of COPAIA’s establishment, “food safety is an issue of steadily growing interest in the Americas; unless it is properly addressed, it can have a negative impact on economic development and on tourism.” Dr. Alleyne also said that “our firm hope is that COPAIA will lead to closer cooperation between the health and agricultural sectors and between food producers and consumers, with a view to improving the health and well-being of the populations of our member countries.”
To date, COPAIA has held four meetings: its inaugural meeting on May 4, 2001; a special meeting to approve its terms of reference, on February 27, 2002; a meeting on the occasion of RIMSA 13, on April 23, 2003; and a meeting on the occasion of RIMSA 14, on April 20, 2005.
COPAIA’s main purpose is to help improve food safety throughout the entire food chain by sustaining the political will of the countries of the Region for adopting food safety programs and promoting coordination and integration with producers and consumers.
To this end, this high-level commission, which consists of Ministers of Health and of Agriculture and of producers’ and consumers’ representatives from the countries of the Americas, operates along the following lines: promotion of intersectoral coordination; strengthening of food safety systems; formulation of policies aimed at the modernization of food sanitary inspection; promotion of integrated systems for vigilance of food-transmitted diseases; establishment of strategic alliances in the areas of education and public information regarding food safety; and promotion of the countries of the Region’s participation in the Codex Alimentarius work.