BVI government – PAHO partner on food protection in the Caribbean

TORTOLA, BVI – The government of the Virgin Islands is partnering with the Pan American Health Organization to reduce the burden of foodborne diseases in the Caribbean.

Deputy chief environmental health officer, Henrietta Alexander said to this end, a ServSafe Food Protection Managers Course is being offered to owners of food business’ and senior management to obtain the knowledge and necessary skills to ensure food safety within their respective businesses.

Alexander added that the training will also improve operational efficiency, reduce liability and food wastage and ensure legal compliance.

The three day ServSafe Food Protection Manager training course will take place from October 2 to 4 from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily and is targeting persons meeting the following criteria.

• Food Business Owners/Managers/ Supervisors;
• Food Business Human Resource Personnel;
• Food Business Financial Officers;
• Food Business Senior Management (who is able to make management decisions);
• Government Agencies/Departments (Tourism, Agriculture and Health).

Alexander stated: “We are looking for persons who work in the food industry and preferably those who have attended food handlers’ sessions. Space is limited so I would advise interested persons to submit their requests as soon as possible.”

Persons interested in obtaining this five year certification, should email their name, place of employment, phone number, highest level of education attained and position to ehd@gov.vg and cc halexander@gov.vg.

Servsafe is a USA based certification training course in Food Safety Science and is internationally recognised and accepted by several countries. It focuses on the technical and managerial aspects of Food Safety Science and is applicable to the Virgin Islands. It emphasises the importance of preventing foodborne diseases in food businesses.