The food safety market - Italy (2023)

1.1 Definition and presentation

Food safety, or food security, is the assurance that the food consumed is safe and of good quality, and that it cannot cause harm to consumers. Food safety is a public health issue and as such is widely controlled by the relevant public authorities. Usually the state controls the quality of food from the source, through strict controls at imports and even at manufacturing companies. Sometimes, as in Italy, there is even a police force that checks restaurants and markets to be sure that food safety is respected. On a global scale, the FAO, in collaboration with the WHO, is the entity in charge of food safety. Codex Alimentarius was established in 1963 by the two organizations as a program to develop standards and guidelines to preserve consumer health. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), founded in 2002 and located in Parma, is responsible for food safety for European countries. EFSA provides professional advice to the European Commission, the European Parliament and EU member states so that they can make efficient and timely risk management choices that preserve the health of European consumers and the safety of food and the food chain.

it is very difficult to estimate the overall food safety market because each state has its own strategies and budget regarding both private and public facilities. It is significant to observe the food safety testing market which is expected to grow with a CAGR of 7.8% for the forecast period 2023-2032.

At the national level, Italy, has invested 8% of public health spending on food safety in 2021. In addition, a number of techniques and procedures (Lisa, HACCP) have been created over time to prevent contamination and control the correctness of operations carried out by food handlers to ensure the safety of food, from raw to packaged product that reaches the consumer's table.the NAS, the Carabinieri's Health Protection Command, is one of Italy's operational food safety bodies. The main responsibilities of the NAS include conducting business inspections, auditing the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point process, and sampling activities for product analysis.