Food and drug administration to keep 'mess' safe for students

Are you being served substandard and unsafe food in your canteen? The food and drug administration (FDA) department could provide some respite. It has taken up the cause and will crackdown on such mess across the city.

"FDA would proactively inspect and collect samples from canteens and mess in colleges and hostels. Quality of food has to be safe". Complaints can also be made through it's call centre which is supervised by its joint controller. FDA action comes nearly a year after the enactment of food safety and standards authority of India (FSSAI) Act which provides that hostels and canteens on campus have to be registered. Selling unsafe food items carries a fine of up to Rs 10 lakh, said Agarwal. Off-campus hostel canteens would be a priority for the FDA inspectors. A private engineering college student residing in a hostel said, "Most of us avoided eating in the canteen during examinations. It is too risky. Complaints about food quality often go unheard and we are instead told to vacate the premises. Eating elsewhere means we have to shell out more."

Enforcement squads to ensure food quality

The State Government on Tuesday decided to intensify the implementation of food safety standards. “All food products manufacturing and selling units having annual turnover of more than Rs.12 lakh will have to obtain licence. Registration of units having less than Rs 12 lakh turnover will be made mandatory,” official sources said after a meeting here.
The legal and executive issues relating to food safety standards were discussed at the meeting presided over by Chief Secretary Bijay Kumar Patnaik on Tuesday.
Health and Family Welfare Secretary PK Mohapatra told the meeting that implementation of food safety standards will be governed as per the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006, which envisages developing an effective enforcement machinery to ensure safety in sale and consumption of food.
Food Safety Commissioner-cum-Director, Public Health, BK Panda said the business units having licence under the Food Adulteration Act will have to renew their licence under the FSS Act by February 4. The renewal of licence will be done at district level.
The additional district medical officers (ADMOs), public health, of the respective areas designated officer for registration. No shop can carry on food business without valid licence or registration. The food inspectors have been designated as food safety officers and 12 new posts have been created, he said.
The State will have 38 Food Safety Officers with one in each district. The remaining eight officers will be posted in urban local bodies. It was proposed to declare the ADM as adjudicating officers.
Food testing laboratories will be set up in five clusters and each cluster will cover four or five districts. Mobile food testing laboratories will be set up to cover remote areas. The cluster testing laboratories are likely to come up in Balasore, Berhampur, Cuttack, Puri and Rourkela.
Patnaik advised the members to involve PRIs in the implementation of the Act with technical support from PHCs. Multimedia campaigns will be undertaken to create awareness about the new food laws, institutions created for implementation, provisions relating to licensing and registration.
The meeting also discussed the feasibility of engaging accredited organisations at field level for inspection of food products at manufacturing level and sale outlets on incentive basis.
Previously the food standards were being enforced by several authorities. Now it will be enforced under a single authority.
Food Safety Standards Authority of India, a regulatory body under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, has started functioning.

Focus on food safety in Odisha

Bhubaneswar, Jan. 29: From now, shops and business establishments selling food materials and having an annual turnover of Rs 12 lakh and above will require a licence from the Odisha government. The ones with a turnover below Rs 12 lakh will be required to register themselves with the Odisha commissioner of food safety. But business establishments with an annual turnover of Rs 20 crore and above will have to obtain a licence from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. A full-fledged commissioner of food safety will be appointed in Odisha soon. The commissioner will be an officer not below the rank of a commissioner-cum-secretary charged with monitoring enforcement of rules and regulations under the Food Safety and Standards Act, which came into force across the country from August 5, 2011. Food safety officers will assist him. At present, the director of public health is acting as the food safety commissioner. A decision was taken today at the level of the chief secretary to intensify enforcement of the Food Safety and Standards Act which envisages development of an effective enforcement machinery to ensure safety in sale and consumption of food. The Act has amalgamated eight existing acts and orders dealing with food adulteration, fruit products, meat products, vegetable oil products, edible oil packaging, solvent extracted, edible flour and dairy products. The meeting, which was presided over by Odisha chief secretary B.K. Patnaik, today decided that there would be 38 food safety officers in the state to enforce food safety laws. The existing 26 food inspectors have been designated as food safety officers. Besides, 12 new posts have also been created. Out of the 38 food safety officers, 30 will be posted at the district level while the rest eight will have to be posted in urban local bodies. It has been proposed that the additional district magistrates of all districts will be declared as the adjudicating officers for the purpose of the Act. A steering committee will also be constituted under the chairmanship of the chief secretary and district level committees will be headed by their respective collectors. Earlier, several authorities were enforcing food standards. Now, it will be done by a single authority. Food safety commissioner –cum-director B.K. Panda said business units, which had licence under the Food Adulteration Act, would have to renew their licences under the Food Safety and Standards Act.

Extension of Proviso to regulation 1.1.2 of Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulation 2011

1.1: Title and commencement
1.1.1:These regulations may be called the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011.
1.1.2: These regulatiions shall come into force on or after 5th August, 2011, except the regulations 2.1.7.(1)(2)(3)(4), 2.1.8 (1)(3), 2.1.11 (1)(2), 2.1.12(1), including table 14 of Appendix A and table 2 of Appendix B which shall come in to force after six months from that date.
Provided that wherever the standards given in these regulations are at variance with any of the provisions of the licenses already granted, Food Business Operator shall comply with the provisions of these regulations within six months from the date of commencement of the regulations.

Dinakaran

Now, food products need to seek approval from government-promoted FSSAI

Probiotic ice-cream, digestive biscuits or low-sugar jams may be flying off retail shelves, but food companies are no longer being allowed to sell new products without taking approvals from the government-promoted Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
According to a new and modified FSSAI advisory issued to all food companies last month, any new or existing product which is ‘proprietary’ – in other words not classified in the food act – will need to follow a regulatory ‘new product approval’ guideline, as laid down by the FSSAI. Even if food companies announce the ingredients on packs and in advertising, they will still need approvals.
According to guidelines, makers of all proprietary products will now have to submit applications to the central government for approval and can launch only after all the necessary approvals have been obtained.
For example, while cheese and butter are standard products, a low-fat ice-cream or dessert would be classified as proprietary. Another example — if the existing food law states that fruit-based jam can be made only with a specific amount of sugar, and if a company chooses to add more or less sugar than what is specified, the product becomes proprietary. Food companies say the move will delay new product development and product innovation, though it will help in filtering out incorrect product claims.
Piruz Khambatta, chairman of beverage concentrate and powder maker Rasna, called it a step backwards. “Such guidelines did not exist in the past… We welcome regulations but they should be conducive to growth instead of delaying both new product development and innovation – which is so important when the market is so competitive,” Khambatta said. Till now, proprietary food products could be approved at the state level, but with the new guidelines in place, companies need to seek approval from the central food authority.
RS Sodhi, MD of dairy giant Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation, which makes the Amul brand of milk, cheese, butter and ice-cream, said: “It’s a good move from the consumer’s point of view… when you deal with food products, you have to be very sure of the claims you are making. But it’s also true that this may delay new launches.”
The move comes at a time when functional foods are growing at a rapid pace. While categories like muesli are growing at 40% a year and are estimated at 100 crore, the 200-crore-plus oats market is growing at about 30%.
“We are applying for fresh approvals even for existing products which are not listed in the existing food act,” said a top official of a leading multinational food company, requesting not to be named.
FSSAI declined comment on the matter, and an official from the authority said all relevant information had been posted on their website.
The FSSAI has also set up an exhaustive set of guidelines for self regulation in all advertising of foods and beverages, along with advertising monitoring agency Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). The guidelines state that ads of foods and beverages making claims like making children taller, helping people lose weight or curing hair-loss will need to prove their declarations scientifically.

FSSAI to conduct survey to study consumer apprehensions

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), in its effort to spread awareness on the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, has commissioned a survey in five districts of Tamil Nadu to study consumer apprehensions.

In order to understand the problems of the consumers, the FSSAI has asked the Consumer Association of India (CAI) to conduct a study amongst the people in five districts of Tamil Nadu to understand what their main concerns or apprehensions on food safety were, Director (Enforcement) of the FSSAI S.S. Ghonkrokta told The-Hindu , on the sidelines of the Workshop on the Food Safety and Standards Act here on Friday.

By understanding the needs of the consumer, it was possible to devise strategies to tackle these issues and make the implementation of food safety stronger.

The idea was for the people in the villages to have a say in food safety, since there were a number of concerns in terms of food standards and security in rural India, he said.

When contacted over the phone, founder trustee of CAI R. Desikan said they were currently working in Chennai, Vellore, Trichy, Madurai and Coimbatore and surrounding villages. Although they had not yet started work on the study, planning was underway, he said.

They had, in the meanwhile, launched a drive to check various shops if they were retailing expired foods.

The CAI was also training 546 food safety officers so that they understood the importance of their job and how to conduct proper checks, Mr. Desikan added.

Speaking on the auditing that was specified under the Act, Dr. Ghonkrokta said that one of the components of the food audit was the self audit, which would be conducted by all food handlers. To help with the food audit, there were 12 agencies appointed, with 500 people working on the food safety auditing.

FSSAI had approved 70 labs in the private sector with NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories) accreditation, to conduct the food safety tests for the audits.

These laboratories were in addition to the 72 State laboratories that were present across the country, he said.

Consumer Association of India will conduct a study in Chennai, Vellore, Trichy, Madurai and Coimbatore

Claims in child food supplements should be scientifically proven

Claims to boost food supplement sales such as Complan improves memory or Boost provides three times more stamina or Horlicks helps your children grow taller will have to come with sound scientific proof before going public or else they would have to pay penalty of upto Rs. 10 lakh.

The government’s Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has asked the advertisers' self-regulating body, the Advertisement Standard Council of India (ASCI), to ask its members to refrain from making tall claims on television without “adequate scientific justification”.

Getting scientific justification would not be easy as per authority's prescription.

The companies would be required to test the product at the authority’s listed laboratories across India for the claim and get it peer reviewed by known scientific names in the field of food and nutrition. Only after that they can air the advertisement making the claim.

The authority in an advisory has also asked the supplement manufacturers to ensure that the product label provides right information to consumers about the scientific validity of the claim.

“All food business operators are advised to strictly follow provisions contained in Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 eschewing misleading claims which are not established by scientific evidence as proof beyond reasonable doubts,” the advisory issued on basis of number of complaints said.

The advisory covers all food and health supplements, nutraceutical (combination of nutrition and pharmaceutical) and risk reduction claims and has asked companies to be clean on this count.

Consumer Affairs secretary Pankaj Aggarwala said the consumers using these supplement can also approach Consumer Courts if they find that the product has failed to provide desired benefit. “There is a provision for claims and fact in the Consumer Protection Act,” he said, adding that the court can direct the manufacturer to correct the misleading advertisements.

Consumer right groups in India have made representations to the ministry and the authority stating that commercials exploit anxiety of parents for their children to do well in examinations and lead healthy life.

Food supplement companies, however, say that their claims have been scientifically validated but they failed to prove the same before the authority, which has initiated prosecution against 19 popular brands for making misleading claims in advertisements. The food safety law provides for penalty of up to Rs. 10 lakh for each misleading claim in any form.

Enforcement of food safety standards to be intensified in Odisha

Report by Pratap Pradhan; Bhubaneswar: Implementation of Food Safety Standards will be intensified in the State. The legal and executive issues  relating to the matter was discussed in a high level meeting held under the Chairmanship of Chief Secretary Bijay Kumar Patnaik in Secretariat conference hall today wherein Pr. Secretary Health & Family Welfare P.K.Mohapatra outlined different issues for discussion.

Deliberations made in the meeting reveal that implementation of Food Safety Standards will be governed as per the Food Safety and Standard Act,2006 which envisages developing an effective enforcement machinery to ensure safety in sale and consumption of food. The New Act has integrated 8 different Acts and Orders like Prevention of Food Adulation Act, 1954,  Fruit Products Order, 1958, Meat Food Products, 1973 ,Vegetable Oil Products (control) order, 1947, Edible Oil Packaging (regulation) Order 1988, Solvent Extracted Oil Deoilded Maal, and Edible Flour (control) order, 1967,  Milk and Milk Products Order, 1992 and Other Orders relating to food under Essential Commodities Act, 1955. In the meanwhile Food Safety & Standards Authority of India has also started functioning as a regulatory body under Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

Previously the food standards were being enforced by several authorities. Now it will be enforced under single authority. The act will be enforced in the State under Food Safety Commissioner who will be assisted by designated officers and food safety officers. It has been proposed to have one food safety Appellate Tribunal, accredited laboratories and referral laboratories in the State. Chief Secretary Sri Patnaik has directed the department to develop proactive self compliance machinery which will check the standards through application of science & technology.

Presently Director of Public Health has been designated as Commissioner of Food Safety. The existing Food Inspectors have been designated as Food Safety Officers. 12 new posts have been created.  It has been decided in the meeting that there will be 38 Food Safety Officers in the state out of whom  30 will be posted at district level each district with one and  8  Officers will be posted in Urban Local Bodies. It has been proposed to declare the Additional District Magistrates of all districts as Adjudicating Officers.

Discussions in the meeting reveal that all food dealing business units having annual turnover of more than 12 lakhs will have to avail license; and, the shops having less than 12 lakh turn over will have to be registered.  Food Safety Commissioner –cum-Director Public Health Dr B.K.Panda has told that the business units who have license under Food Adulteration Act will have to renew their license under FSS Act within 4th February, 2012. This renewal will be done at district level. The  ADMO, Public Health of the respective districts have been designated for the purpose. No shop can carry on food business without valid license or registration.  Chief Secretary has advised to facilitate the process of the registration by making provisions for registrations in Common Service Centers.

It has been decided that the steering committee at the State level will be constituted under the Chairmanship of the Chief Secretary and the District Committee will be constituted under the chairmanship of respective Collectors. At the District level the District Medical Officer will function as the member Conveyer. It has also been decided that 5 Cluster Food Testing Laboratories will be set up in the State.  Each cluster will cover 4 to 5 districts. Mobile Food testing laboratory will be set up to cover remote area, large public congregations and disease outbreak areas. Chief Secretary has advised to develop the clusters in urban areas like Berhampur, Cuttack, Puri, Balasore, Rourkela. Chief Secretary Sri Patnaik has also advised to involve PRI Institutions in implementation of the Act with technical support from primary health centers. It has been decided in the meeting that collected license and registration fees will be used for awareness generation and grievance redressesal activities.

Multimedia campaigns will be under taken to generate awareness among common masses and stakeholders about the new food law, institutions created for implementation, provisions relating to licensing and registration etc. Chief Secretary Sri Patnaik has advised to specify and prescribe the safety standards to be followed by the food dealing business units. Chief Secretary has also advised to train and engage accredited activists at field level to inspect the food dealing shops on incentive basis. The Director, Public Health, Dr. B.K. Panda along with other senior officers participated in discussions.