Time for ‘Safe to Eat Place’: expert

N. Anandavally 

UN ex-official cites Technopark cafeteria inspection and resultant row

It is high time the State government implemented the Safe to Eat Place programme in association with the Kerala Tourism Development Corporation , says N. Anandavally, former Food Safety Consultant of the United Nations.

Talking to The Hindu, Dr. Anandavally said food safety inspection in a cafeteria at Technopark and the subsequent unpleasant scenes reported in the media a few weeks ago should be an eye-opener.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) regulation or any global regulation based on science is transparent and easily implementable. But, the way in which it is being implemented is disturbing for those who knew about the international or Codex system.

Dr. Anandavally said the intent should be to improve and educate those who are unaware of the importance of food safety and take action in case of serious deficiencies or non-compliance.

Proper procedure

It would be improper to go to a food handling facility with an army of police personnel. Instead, two or three food safety officials may visit the facility, evaluate the Good Hygiene Practices (GHPs), Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), and the layout or design of the facility, and provide a foolproof report to the authority concerned as is being done elsewhere, she said.

It is also the responsibility of the food safety officers to convince the management who may not be that knowledgeable in the area of food safety, she said.

Citing the recent seizure of stale curd from a godown in Ernakulam, Dr. Anandavally said the government should not wait for a crisis situation to act in the area of food safety.

Need for guidance

Any inspection should be a sort of communication of information and education for those who are being inspected. They should be guided for application of GHPs and GMPs even in a small facility so that issues related to hygiene and food safety would be minimised.

Dr. Anandavally, who initiated the concept of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) to address food safety in 1990, has already conducted more than 5,000 training programmes on food safety.