Thailand’s Health Ministry Looks to Improve the Safety of Street Food

BANGKOK – Public Health Ministry is encouraging partners to improve the quality of street food to boost tourism and the economy in Thailand.

Deputy Public Health Minister Sathit Pitutecha discussed the issue with about 130 people in a meeting in Pathum Thani province.

They included representatives from the Department of Health, provincial health offices, local administrative organizations and the organizations of street food vendors.

Street food in Thailand to Meet Safety Standards

Mr Sathit said that more people were depending on street food. Statistics show that last year there were 93,261 street food vendors and 84.72%, met standards for tastes and hygiene.

The government wanted to further improve their quality so that street food would show off local characteristics, boost the tidiness of public places and promote local tourism and economy, the deputy public health minister said.

Local administrative organizations would play leading roles in improving the quality of local street food. They could copy pilot projects concerning the promotion of street food in their areas, he said.

Thailand’s street food scene is well renowned, and Bangkok is widely regarded as among the world’s best spots.

If not the single leading place for street food gorging. It’s no accident that Thailand is home to such rich culinary traditions. The variety and quality of dishes offered by its mobile hawkers is so rich.

It’s the result of foodie traditions and developments that stretch back over decades, if not centuries.