Description
The National Food Safety Gathering 2026 was successfully held with the participation of Consumer Society members and Civil Society representatives from all 25 districts of Sri Lanka. The event served as an important platform for dialogue, collaboration, and action on food safety and consumer protection. The programme featured a panel discussion, a media conference, and a collaborative session to develop a future action plan aimed at strengthening food safety advocacy and consumer engagement across the country.
The panel discussion was moderated by Dr. Chathura Weliwitiya and brought together experts representing international organizations, government institutions, civil society, and consumer groups to discuss key food safety challenges and opportunities in Sri Lanka.
Panel Discussion Topics and Speakers.
Moderator:
Dr. Chathura Weliwitiya
Mr. Nalin Munasinghe (FAO)
Topic: Food Systems Improvement and Safety in Sri Lanka: The Role of Consumers
(ශ්රී ලංකාව තුළ ආහාර පද්ධති වැඩි දියුණු කිරීම හා පාරිභෝගිකයාගේ කාර්යභාරය)
Mr. Nanayakkara (Consumer Affairs Authority – CAA)
Topic: How Consumer Associations Can Engage with the Consumer Affairs Authority on Food Safety Issues
(පාරිභෝගික සංගම්, ආහාර ආරක්ෂිතතාවය සඳහා පාරිභෝගික අධිකාරිය හා සම්බන්ධ වන අයුරු)
Mr. Madarasinghe (Food Control Administration Unit – FCAU)
Topic: Supporting Consumers through the Regulatory Framework for Food Safety
(ආහාර ආරක්ෂිතතාවය සඳහා නියාමන රාමුව හරහා පාරිභෝගිකයාට සහාය වීම)
Ms. Visakha Tillekeratne (Civil Society Organization Representative)
Topic: Creation and Sustainability of Consumer Associations: The Role of Other Civil Society Organizations
(පාරිභෝගික සංගම් බිහි කිරීම හා තිරසාරත්වය – අනෙකුත් සිවිල් සංවිධානවල මෙහෙවර)
Mr. Karunadasa Munagama (Consumer Society Representative)
Topic: Raising a Voice for Safe Food and Leading Solutions to Consumer Concerns
(ආරක්ෂිත ආහාර ඉල්ලා හඬක් නැගීම සහ ගැටලු විසඳුම් කරා ගෙන යාම)
The discussions highlighted the importance of strengthening consumer awareness, enhancing collaboration between consumer societies and regulatory authorities, improving food systems governance, and empowering citizens to advocate for safe food. The event concluded with the development of a collective action plan to guide future advocacy and engagement efforts, reinforcing the commitment of consumer societies and civil society organizations to ensuring safe food for all Sri Lankans.
As a practical consumer-led initiative to promote food safety, coconut oil samples were collected by Consumer Societies from different districts across Sri Lanka for laboratory testing and quality assessment. This activity aimed to identify potential food safety concerns, enhance consumer awareness, and encourage greater accountability among food producers and suppliers.
The panel discussion was moderated by Dr. Chathura Weliwitiya and brought together experts representing international organizations, government institutions, civil society, and consumer groups to discuss key food safety challenges and opportunities in Sri Lanka.
Panel Discussion Topics and Speakers.
Moderator:
Dr. Chathura Weliwitiya
Mr. Nalin Munasinghe (FAO)
Topic: Food Systems Improvement and Safety in Sri Lanka: The Role of Consumers
(ශ්රී ලංකාව තුළ ආහාර පද්ධති වැඩි දියුණු කිරීම හා පාරිභෝගිකයාගේ කාර්යභාරය)
Mr. Nanayakkara (Consumer Affairs Authority – CAA)
Topic: How Consumer Associations Can Engage with the Consumer Affairs Authority on Food Safety Issues
(පාරිභෝගික සංගම්, ආහාර ආරක්ෂිතතාවය සඳහා පාරිභෝගික අධිකාරිය හා සම්බන්ධ වන අයුරු)
Mr. Madarasinghe (Food Control Administration Unit – FCAU)
Topic: Supporting Consumers through the Regulatory Framework for Food Safety
(ආහාර ආරක්ෂිතතාවය සඳහා නියාමන රාමුව හරහා පාරිභෝගිකයාට සහාය වීම)
Ms. Visakha Tillekeratne (Civil Society Organization Representative)
Topic: Creation and Sustainability of Consumer Associations: The Role of Other Civil Society Organizations
(පාරිභෝගික සංගම් බිහි කිරීම හා තිරසාරත්වය – අනෙකුත් සිවිල් සංවිධානවල මෙහෙවර)
Mr. Karunadasa Munagama (Consumer Society Representative)
Topic: Raising a Voice for Safe Food and Leading Solutions to Consumer Concerns
(ආරක්ෂිත ආහාර ඉල්ලා හඬක් නැගීම සහ ගැටලු විසඳුම් කරා ගෙන යාම)
The discussions highlighted the importance of strengthening consumer awareness, enhancing collaboration between consumer societies and regulatory authorities, improving food systems governance, and empowering citizens to advocate for safe food. The event concluded with the development of a collective action plan to guide future advocacy and engagement efforts, reinforcing the commitment of consumer societies and civil society organizations to ensuring safe food for all Sri Lankans.
As a practical consumer-led initiative to promote food safety, coconut oil samples were collected by Consumer Societies from different districts across Sri Lanka for laboratory testing and quality assessment. This activity aimed to identify potential food safety concerns, enhance consumer awareness, and encourage greater accountability among food producers and suppliers.
