As world shrinks, food consumption too gets globalised: Azad

Faster travel and communications have led to the shrinking of the world, and food production, processing and consumption too are now globalised and commercialised, union Health Minister Gulam Nabi Azad said Monday.

Addressing the inaugural session of the 36th session of Codex Alimentarius Commission in Rome, Azad said the days when people only consumed food that was grown and produced locally are now gone.

The Codex Commission is responsible for laying down the global parameters of quality and safety of food products for human consumption.

Azad said that whatever is produced in one part of the world is available to other parts because of improved means of import and export.

The membership of the commission has grown from 30 countries to 150 countries, over the last 50 years.

Azad said it was time to create more awareness about the codex in different countries.

He said India was playing an active role in all codex meetings and working groups, and had received support from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), World Health Organisation (WHO) and some trading partners in capacity building in food safety management.