Founded in 2020 by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, the Saudi Food and Drug Authority, and Food Standards Australia New Zealand, the International Heads of Food Agencies Forum (IHFAF) is an annual convening that addresses important issues in food safety, food standards, nutrition, and risk communication.
The IHFAF has 17 member organisations from around the world. The FSAI is an Executive Committee Member of the IHFAF and is represented at Forum meetings by the CEO, Greg Dempsey.
The Forum is focused on ensuring food regulators worldwide are equipped to adapt to the fast pace of change in consumer behaviour, in food production practices, in technologies and in environmental conditions impacting food safety and quality.
It aims to ensure that food regulatory measures continue to support consumer protection, strengthen global food safety systems, and improve our collective response to food safety crises.
The key objectives of the IHFAF are:
- Sharing information about the work priorities of food safety agencies, food authorities and risk assessment agencies
- Developing collaborative initiatives, including in the context of international standard setting and the Codex Alimentarius Commission
- Exploring opportunities to address common challenges by sharing resources
Further information is available on the IHFAF website.