Sigurnost hrane pojam je novijeg doba uveden nakon niza incidenata povezanih s hranom kako bi se povećalo povjerenje potrošača u hranu koja se konzumira. Područje sigurnosti hrane jedno je od najbolje zakonski reguliranih područja. Zakoni i drugi propisi u Republici Hrvatskoj u potpunosti su usklađeni sa uredbama i odlukama tijela Europske unije. Kada se radi o sigurnosti hrane, Europska unija je jedinstveno tijelo koje visoku razinu zaštite zdravlja potrošača osigurava ujednačenim zakonodavstvom poljoprivrednog sektora kao i sektora proizvodnje hrane u svim zemljama članicama. Sa sadašnjom zakonskom regulativom obuhvaćen je cijeli lanac proizvodnje hrane od „polja do stola“, počevši od primarne proizvodnje, preko transporta, skladištenja i pripreme hrane, a također pokriva i uvoz i izvoz prehrambenih proizvoda. Uspostavljen je sustav sljedivosti hrane i hrane za životinje, definirana primarna odgovornost subjekata u poslovanju s hranom te obveza uvođenja postupaka samokontrole za sve subjekte u poslovanju s hranom. Ovim pristupom proizvođačima su postavljeni visoki standardi sigurnosti i kvalitete hrane. U slučajevima kada dođe do kontaminacije proizvoda i zdravstveno neispravna hrana ipak se nađe na tržištu, sustav brzog uzbunjivanja za hranu i hranu za životinje osigurava obavješćivanje potrošača u što kraćem roku te povlačenje i opoziv zdravstveno neispravnih proizvoda na brz i efikasan način. Industrija proizvodnje hrane i pića ima velik doprinos europskom gospodarstvu, jer je to najveći prerađivački sektor u Europskoj uniji prema pokazateljima ukupnog prometa, dodane vrijednosti i zaposlenosti. Iako se proizvode dovoljne količine hrane dostatne za čitavu svjetsku populaciju problem je u tome što hrana nije ravnomjerno raspoređena kako bi došla do svih.Food safety is a recent term introduced after a series of food-related incidents to increase consumer confidence in the food being consumed. The area of food safety is one of the best regulated areas. Laws and regulations in the Republic of Croatia are fully harmonized with the regulations and decisions of the bodies of the European Union. When it comes to food safety, the European Union is a unique body that ensures a high level of consumer health protection through uniform legislation in the agricultural and food production sectors in all Member States. The current legislation covers the entire food production chain “from farm to table”, starting from primary production, through transport, storage and preparation of food, and also covers the import and export of food products. The system of traceability of food and feed has been established, the primary responsibility of food business operators has been defined, and the obligation to introduce self-control procedures for all food business operators has been established. With this approach, manufacturers have set high standards of food safety and quality. However, in cases where contamination of the product occurs and the defective food is still on the market, the rapid alert system for food and feed ensures that consumers are informed as soon as possible and the withdrawal and recall of the defective product in a fast and efficient manner. The food and beverage industry is a major contributor to the European economy, as it is the largest manufacturing sector in the European Union in terms of total turnover, value added and employment. Although sufficient quantities of food are produced for the entire world population, the problem is that food is not evenly distributed to reach everyone. With food production, huge amounts of food are thrown away and decayed, at all stages through which food passes through until it reaches the final consumer
