The 11th Dubai International Food Safety Conference themed 'Predict, Prevent, Protect', and held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance and Chairman of Dubai Municipality, at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibitions Centre concluded on Monday.

The three-day conference, organised by the Food Safety Department of Dubai Municipality with support from the International Association for Food Protection, International Union of Food Science and Technology and the Institute of Food Technologists, was attended by specialists and experts in food safety from inside and outside the country.

The conference concluded with the municipality presenting papers in the symposium on Chemical Risk Assessment and Management. The seminar highlighted that pesticide residues and contaminants had been a food safety concern for a long time.

It also said that there had been several changes in the regulatory approach to matching the advancements in testing methods, and standards are continuously being revised. However, there is still a lot of confusion and inconsistency in the strategies used worldwide regarding testing, interpretation of results as well as decision-making.

Dr. Naseem Mohammed Rafie, Head of the Consumer Products Safety Section in the Public Health and Safety Department, presented a paper on 'Heavy Metal Content of Herbal Health Supplement Products in Dubai'. A paper by the Veterinary Services Section dealt with 'Pesticide Residues and Chemical Hazards in Animal Food'.

Another symposium was held on 'Food Control Systems and Food Inspection Approaches', which focused on the current developments in the field of inspection and accreditation. The Emirates International Accreditation Centre participated in this symposium with a lecture on the importance of ISO/IEC 17020 Accreditation: A Food Safety Benchmark Tool.

The new services in the Food and Environment Laboratories Section in the Dubai Central Laboratory were introduced by Fatema Saeed bin Bakhit of the Food Chemistry Unit. Many educational sessions, workshops and student presentations were also conducted on the concluding day of the conference.

The symposium also focused on strategies and methods to encourage healthier food choices among school children. It discussed ways and means to raise awareness among different stakeholders and to get them actively engaged in the process of creating the desired food culture in schools further to the implementation of the new guidelines for food and nutrition in Dubai schools.