The Universitat de València has inaugurated in Cairo (Egypt) the headquarters of its Nutrition and Food Safety Observatory for the Developing World. The Observatory was formed in the third trimester of 2007 through a research project between the Valencian Government and the Universitat. During this year there have been achieved a total of five research projects and aids for inter-university cooperation and scientific research projects.
One of the projects comes from the Valencian Government and the other four from the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), with a total budget of 50,000 Euros.
The Nutrition and Food Safety Observatory for the Developing World-Universitat de València has as honorific member doctor Jacques Diouf; former general director of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
The research projects conducted from the Observatory have allowed for implementing a microbiological analysis laboratory at the National Research Center (NRC) in Cairo where there is the new headquarters of the Observatory. The results of this projects have allowed for carrying out a wide microbiological study in Egypt about the known as ready-to-eat foods, which include sandwiches and a variety of hot food that are widely distributed by street vendors in small street trades.
These vendors use aluminium, stainless steel and plastic utensils to prepare and serve these foods. The stuffing of these foods are prepared with boiled or fried foodstuff, but normally the most demanded and consumed are mixes of rice, macaroni, lentils and fried onion in addition to fried bean pasta.
Along with this work there have been made six publications, three book chapters; in addition to various communications to international conferences.
The new headquarters will be codirected by doctor El-Shenawy (who is also professor of the Alexandria University) and by doctor José Miguel Soriano, professor of the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health of the Faculty of Pharmacy at the Universitat de València.
The Observatory is part of the living lab Food&HealthLab, promoted by the Campus of International Excellence VLC / CAMPUS, through the programme for the creation of Innovative Ecosystems funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports, and it also has the support of the Policies for Excellence Office of the Universitat de València. The activities of the Observatory have the support of the University Clinic of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Physiotherapy (CUNAFF) of the Lluís Alcanyís Foundation, the Gastrolab of the Institute of Material Science-Parc Científic of the Universitat de València and the Mixed Research Unit on Endocrinology, Nutrition and Clinical Dietetics of the Universitat de València-Institute of Health Research La Fe.
