About the safefood Knowledge Network
Since it was established in 1999, safefood has proactively promoted awareness and knowledge of food safety all across the island of Ireland. To facilitate this, the Knowledge Network programme was launched in 2011, and its aim was to encourage collaboration and facilitate greater knowledge sharing by those involved along all parts of the food supply chain.
Our Network is membership based, free to all, and we encourage all those who are involved in food safety, in whatever aspect, to join our community. We keep members up-to-date on food safety issues and trends, and also encourage shared learnings and discussion of emerging food safety risks and potential solutions. Members can avail of a wide variety of events incl. briefings, workshops, training and upskilling seminars; as well as newsletters and our NING platform which facilitates further access to new resources, videos and webinars.
The Knowledge Network has evolved over the years – for example, in 2016, safefood first assembled a group of experts from industry, research and public health, which helped to guide our Network activities and advised on topics such as training and supports, new services for members and insights around food safety risks.
Our current Expert Group of nine highly experienced individuals from across these islands, is a very important component in our efforts to achieve these aims. They provide a broad range of professional services to help further develop the Knowledge Network and its activities. safefood is delighted to have gathered together a diverse panel of experts in many areas including food microbiology, food trade, environmental health and food hypersensitivity, to share their knowledge and passion for food safety.
The present 3-year programme of the Knowledge Network (2019-22) has built upon the achievements of previous programmes and now covers a wide variety of food safety areas as well as broader topics which may impact on food safety, such as trade and economic issues, climate change and sustainability. These elements are also reflected in the expertise of our current Expert Group.
Our key objectives for the 2019-2022 Knowledge Network programme are:
1. To raise awareness and provide opportunities for the sharing and learning of best practice food safety knowledge on the island of Ireland;
2. To further develop multi-disciplinary and cross-jurisdictional working relationships between food safety professionals operating across food production, academia and other public bodies-based sectors;
3. To provide an accessible source of expertise for safefood with a view to exploring existing concerns, identifying emerging issues in food safety and enhancing its in-house evidence base;
4. To promote cooperation, collaboration and synergies between professionals in the food safety arena throughout the whole island of Ireland
With an ambitious Knowledge Network plan laid out from now until 2022, our core objective is to help protect the health of the public and make the whole food industry better – and safer - for all.
Find out more in our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's) section and our Terms of Service.
