LAHORE: A delegation of the World Health Organization (WHO) called on Director General of the Punjab Food Authority (PFA) Raja Jahangir Anwar here on Thursday to discuss the medical screening project and reorganize the testing system for food-borne diseases.

During the meeting, DG PFA said that the authority was working on reducing medical screening fees for small-scale businesses and providing free facilities for roadside street vendors. He also highlighted the plan to reorganize the testing system for food-borne diseases with the help of WHO, as well as the implementation of food worker screenings to prevent the spread of such diseases.

Furthermore, he said that the help of other departments and institutions including WHO would be taken to reduce the burden on food workers. He said there were around 0.5 million basic food workers including roadside street vendors across Punjab.

The director general further stated that efforts are being made to reduce the burden of medical screening fees for small food workers. He said that if hepatitis is detected during the medical screening, food workers will be referred for free treatment.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023