Kudumbasree food units ready for new food safety regime - THE HINDU

Seventy-five per cent of the 200 canteens run by the women entrepreneurs have completed their registration.

Food processing units and canteens run by women entrepreneurs under the Kudumbasree poverty eradication mission are ready to fulfil formalities prescribed by Food Safety and Standards Rules, 2011, registration under which is mandatory by August 4.

An official of the Kudumbasree mission said that training programmes have been on since March this year to create awareness among the entrepreneurs and to make them familiar with new food safety and standards regulations.

The official said that about 90 per cent of the food-related enterprises have completed their registration process as none of them fall within the category of having a turnover of more than Rs.12 lakh a year.There are 393 enterprises in the State that prepare the food supplement Nutrimix. All of them have completed the registration process, said the official.

Seventy-five per cent of the 200 canteens run by the women entrepreneurs have also completed their registration. There are also about 90 big units and more than 200 small units that prepare masalas, curry powders and various flours. Their registration process is on.

The official said that the cadre of micro enterprise consultants under Kudumbasree has been preparing the entrepreneurs for the new food safety regime. The entrepreneurs have been interacting with food safety officers to clear their doubts about the new norms.

Dates worth Rs 9 lakh seized

Officials of the FDA, Konkan region, raided a food Factory in Navi Mumbai and seized dates worth Rs 9 lakh, being illegally handled and in violation of food safety regulations.
Addressing a news conference here today, FDA Joint Commissioner (Food) S K Shere said it was absolutely essential under the Food Act for any processor or manufacturer to have a valid licence while dealing with products. However. it was found that Devi Foods did not have the same. The explanation given by it was that they got the bulk material from one Bait AL Tamur nearby and were packing it for them. Mr.Shere said that during interrogation, it transpired that even Bait was not the importer of the product. Usually the product is imported from Gulf in bulk and repacked into small packs and sold in domestic market.
As per regulations, when any one imports the product in bulk it is mandatory that they distinctly put the remark on the labels as Manufactured by, Imported and packed. these declarations were not not present on the packs. The pack also did not contain the other requisite details like Batch No: date of expiry and MRP, he said.
Mr Shere said the officials seized 9898 Kgs of packed dates worth about Rs 9 lakh from Devi Foods and an additional 876 Kgs of the same product valued at around Rs 50 lakh from Bait Al Tamur.
The samples of the seized goods have been sent for analysis after which further action will be initiated against the units. he said.
The Devi Foods is owned by Anil Parekh and Bait Al Tamur by Rajesh Asher, he disclosed Both the units had violated provisions of Food Safety & Standards (Packaging & Labeling) Regulation 2011, Rule 2.2.2.6 (ii), and 2.2.2.8 and action would be taken against them for the same.

BPC welcomes EFSA scientific opinion on poultry inspection

A recent scientific report produced by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on poultry meat inspection has been welcomed by the British Poultry Council (BPC).

The report, which outlines epidemiological indicators for food-borne biological hazards to public health, was released last month (June 2012) and offers the scientific opinion of the EFSA on hazards such as salmonella, campylobacter and AmpC beta-lactamase-producing E.coli in poultry meat production.

Chief executive of the British Poultry Council (BPC) Peter Bradnock said the report was a “positive and sensible” move towards enhancing the system of food safety controls applied to poultry meat in the EU.

In 2010 the European Commission (EUC) asked EFSA to investigate risk assessments on the hazards to the health of the public from current poultry meat inspection standards. EFSA was also tasked with recommending alternative approaches and improvements to the current poultry meat inspection system.

In a statement, the UK’s Food Standards Agency said they had “argued for some time” that the current system of official meat controls did not address the most relevant meat-borne pathogens of today, which they said were unable to be detected as they are microbiological and cannot be seen by the naked eye.

And Bradnock added: “We have long reasoned that the traditional visual inspection procedures enshrined in EU legislation for all species are inappropriate in the modern poultry industry. The approach needs to be modernised into a kind of intergrated food safety assurance system focusing on biological risk, which is being recommended in this option.”

Suggestions made by the report included a modernisation of poultry meat inspection and an improved use of shared information between farms and abattoirs (food chain information), which would also help to identify animal health and welfare issues.

The need for clear targets to be set for poultry carcases and flocks was one of the main recommendations given in the report for the control of biological hazards. But to do this, farmers and abattoirs need to utilise the control options available for hazards and focus on food chain information, said the report.

Pre-cut lemon slices, packed seafood under lens for pathogen contamination

NEW DELHI: Juicy pre-cut melon slices and sumptuous packed seafood available at super markets across the world have come under the scanner for contamination with deadly pathogens.

The Codex Alimentarius Commission, jointly run by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), which sets international food safety and quality standards to promote safer and more nutritious food for consumers worldwide has said that an emerging public health issue relates to the increased popularity of pre-cut melon slices.

According to it, exposed pulp of the fruit can become a breeding ground for bacteria that has been linked to life-threatening salmonella and listeria outbreaks.

The UN food standards body, which has just finished agreeing on new regulations in its annual meeting in Rome, has recommended that pre-cut melons should be wrapped or packaged and refrigerated as soon as possible and distributed at temperatures of 4 degrees Celsius or less. Cooling and cold storage was recommended soon after harvest, while knife blades used for cutting or peeling should be disinfected on a regular basis.

The new regulations also include the maximum level of melamine in liquid milk formula for babies. Melamine can be lethal at high concentrations and has been used illegally to increase apparent protein content in food products including infant formula and milk powder. Milk tainted with melamine has caused both death and ailments in infants.

Two years ago, the Codex Commission adopted a maximum melamine level of 1 mg/kg for powdered infant formula, and of 2.5 mg/kg for other foods and animal feed.

Now, the Commission has set a maximum limit of 0.15 mg/kg for melamine in liquid infant milk.

Melamine is used to make dishware and kitchenware, among other industrial applications. "The new limit will help governments protect consumers by determining if detected levels of melamine result from unavoidable melamine contamination that does not cause health problems or from deliberate adulteration," WHO said.

The global food safety body has also warned against Aflatoxins — a group of mycotoxins produced by molds are toxic and are known to be carcinogenic. They can be found in a variety of products such as dried fruits, nuts, spices and cereals at high levels if the produce is not stored properly.

The Commission has agreed to a safe maximum limit of 10 mg/kg for dried figs, together with details on how test sampling should be conducted.

Codex, whose meeting from 2-7 July was attended by 600 delegates representing 184 countries including India, also recommended that food manufacturers across the world label nutritional content on their products to ensure that consumers are better informed. The recommendation is in sync with WHO's strategy on diet, physical activity and health, and is a major step forward in promoting healthy eating worldwide.