#8 | WHO Food Safety Surveillance: Strengthening Global Systems to Detect and Prevent Foodborne Diseases

In this episode of the GMJ Podcast — the official podcast of the Georgian Medical Journal, we examine the World Health Organization’s updated manuals for strengthening foodborne disease surveillance and response systems worldwide.The episode reviews the WHO policy update “Updated WHO manuals released to help countries strengthen foodborne disease surveillance and response,” which introduces a three-stage framework designed to help countries detect, monitor, and prevent foodborne disease outbreaks across the entire food supply chain.Foodborne illnesses remain a major global public health challenge, affecting hundreds of millions of people each year and placing significant pressure on national health systems. The updated WHO guidance emphasizes the importance of early detection, reliable surveillance networks, and integrated data systems linking public health, laboratory, environmental, and animal health sectors.The discussion explains the three-stage WHO roadmap for strengthening food safety surveillance systems:• Stage 1 – Foundational Detection: establishing core indicator-based and event-based surveillance to identify local outbreaks• Stage 2 – System Strengthening: improving reliability and coordination of national surveillance networks• Stage 3 – Integrated Surveillance: connecting laboratory, public health, animal health, and environmental data for comprehensive monitoring across the food chainThe episode also highlights key system-level implications including:• Multisectoral collaboration between health, agriculture, and environmental sectors• The growing influence of climate and environmental change on foodborne disease risks• The role of data-driven decision making in preventing large-scale public health crises• The importance of modern tools such as genomic surveillance and digital reporting systemsThis analytical review is intended for clinicians, epidemiologists, food safety specialists, researchers, and public health policymakers interested in strengthening global disease surveillance systems and improving national capacity to detect and respond to foodborne disease outbreaks.Original WHO source discussed in this episode:https://www.who.int/news/item/14-01-2026-updated-who-manuals-released-to-help-countries-strengthen-foodborne-disease-surveillance-and-responseThe GMJ Podcast accompanies peer-reviewed publications and global health policy developments discussed within the Georgian Medical Journal, supporting structured academic discussion and dissemination of evidence-based public health knowledge.#გიორგიფხაკაძე #drpkhakadze #sheniekimi