 The meeting of stakeholders within the sphere of food safety and policymaking was held at the public service training room in April. The consultative session focused on food safety legislation informing and directing policy and strengthening food safety systems. Strengthening food safety systems not only protects our imported foods but also assures quality export standards. Chief Environmental Health Officer Pakha Raghnanan says a developing food industry needs policy reform to keep up with standards. All of us consume food and all of us should be excited that St. Lucia is really looking at its system to ensure that we protect our consumers against food fraud, against contaminated foods and to ensure that what has been presented on the table is actually safe for consumption and would not cause any harmful health effects. Poman and Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Early Affairs, Jenny Daniel says a nation's health depends highly on the foods consumed. The strategic objective of strengthening and improving the national health profile can only be attained with a thorough examination of the nutritional composition of the population's diet. Intricately linked with this is a need to review our food sources and to delve into the origins and quality aspects of our food, the origins of our food, which overarchingly includes the broad spectrum from leading from the farm to the table. Medical Officer Dr Sharon Belma George considers the review a timely venture as the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Early Affairs continues to register increases in unsafe food products. The Ministry of Health, we've recognized the limitations in food safety regulations over the years. As the current regulations do not address significant components of regulating the food industry. Notably, there are no provisions in place to mandate food safety principles such as hazard analysis, critical control points, national food safety standards, food traceability, recalls, imports and export requirements. The Chief Medical Officer noted that while current issues are being dealt with as they arise, the bill will assist with structure. The Food Safety Bill's stakeholder's consultation was the first of many consultations ahead of implementation. Saint Lucia is joining CARICOM in ensuring the necessary focus will be placed on food safety. For the Ministry of Health, Wellness and Early Affairs, I'm Saint Justin.