Agenda Items 5-9	Conference Room Document 21 English only

FAO/WHO Regional Conference on Food Safety for Asia and the Pacific

Seremban, Malaysia, 24-27 May, 2004

TROPICAL FRUIT: FOOD SAFETY, NUTRITION & HEALTH*

(Tropical Fruit Network)

The Asia-Oceania region is the largest producer of tropical fruits accounting for about 66% of world output (FAO 2002). However, less then 5% of the production is exported. Nevertheless, the sector provides substantial foreign exchange earning with export value of fresh tropical fruits amounting to US 1.3billion while processed fruits, USD640 million (2002). The global growth rates in production and export are also encouraging, estimated at 3.8% and 3.1% respectively per annum.

Tropical fruits are packed with valuable nutrients: vitamins, micronutrients, phytochemicals and fibres. However, the per capita consumption of tropical fruits is relatively low in the region, about one-third the recommended rate of 150kg/capita/year. At the same time, according to WHO, incidences of Non Communicable Diseases (NCD), such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes are on the increase. The region has also a fair share of malnutrition in vitamin A and protein especially among the young which may affect the productivity of many countries. Tropical fruits have the potential of addressing these health issues because of their inherent nutritional values.

An integrated campaign involving the public and private sectors as well as civil societies need to be intensified to increase consumption of tropical fruits. In addition, more R&D needs to be undertaken to identify fruit species with the desired nutrient contents especially, phytochemicals, and epidemiological studies on the impact of fruit intake on disease prevention and reduction.

On the supply side, tropical fruit requires Good Agricultural Practice (GAP), HACCP and other best practice protocols, including organic farming to ensure safe and nutritious food from farm to table.

* Presented by Khairuddin Md. Tahir, Chief Executive Officer, International Tropical Fruits Network (TFNet)