The Central Board of Health (CBH) has been taking proactive measures to ensure food safety ahead of two major international events in Antigua and Barbuda in a few months.

To upgrade the skills of food safety inspectors, the CBH organized a series of training sessions on food safety that were attended by public health inspectors, environmental health aides, and private individuals.

The training was conducted as a Certified Servsafe Training and Certification Program held at the Villa Community Centre, and it was aimed at enhancing the capacity of the food safety inspection team.

The two major events that are expected to attract more than five thousand delegates in St. John’s are the Fourth Conference of Small Islands Developing States (SIDS4), which will take place from May 27-30, and the ITC Men’s T20 World Cup, which will be held from June 1-29 at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.

With a large number of people expected to visit the events and consume food prepared and sold by vendors, it is crucial to ensure that food safety measures are in place.

Acting Principal Public Health Inspector, Julienne Mannix, said that the training was timely and necessary because of the two events.

The addition of new public health inspectors made it necessary to upgrade their skills to conduct thorough food safety inspections.

The training helped to ensure that the team is well-equipped to handle the influx of people and the increased demand for food during the events.

Former Chief Health Inspector at the Central Board of Health Lionel Michael conducted the training called the Food Safety Protection Managers Course.

The training was designed to serve as a refresher course for experienced officers and to build capacity for new officers in food safety inspections.

It helped to update their skill set, enabling them to conduct training and examinations themselves. Overall, the CBH’s efforts to upgrade the skills of food safety inspectors through training are commendable.

It is essential to ensure that food sold to the public during major events is safe for consumption. The training will go a long way in ensuring that the public is protected from foodborne illnesses, and the events are a success.