Shirdi ‘prasad’ gets ISO certification

Shirdi (Maharashtra), Oct 13 (IANS) The ‘prasadalaya’ of the renowned Saibaba temple here has bagged an ISO 22000-2005 certification for food safety, an official said Sunday. 

The certificate was handed over to Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust chairman and district judge Jayant Kulkarni during the 95th ‘punyatithi’ (death anniversary) of Saibaba, a saint who lived and preached in the region in the late 19th and early 20th century. ISO 22000-2005 specifies requirements for a food safety management system where an organization in the food chain must demonstrate its ability to control safety hazards to ensure that food is safe during consumption. 

According to temple officials, on an average, the Saibaba shrine, 285 km from Mumbai, daily attracts around 25,000 devotees. This figure swells during special occasions like the ongoing ‘punyatithi’ function. Over two million devotees have converged for the three-day event ending Monday. 

The temple provides a free packet of its popular laddoos to each devotee as Saibaba’s blessing. Additional laddoos can be purchased for Rs.20 for a packet. 

Besides, the ‘prasadalaya’ provides meals for devotees at nominal charges.

Seized items to be disposed

IMPHAL, September 23: Contraband food items which were seized under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 will be disposed of at the Municial solide Waste Landfill site, Lamphelpat on September 25.

According to a source, the seized food items include tin fish (Sea cherry) Mackerals sowkar (in brine) manufactured by Sowkar Canning Company Karnataka; Mikko Nutritious Cereal (High Calcium)-25g, Mikko (3 in 1 instant Coffeemix); Snacks (bakery items) and Milk and Milk products, Pickles/Achar items (Fruits and fishes).

The items were seized as there were no information of manufacture and expiry dates, batch numbers, nutritional information etc.

The items also include tobacco products like Gutkha, Khaini, Zarda, Pan masala, chewable and smokeless tobacco products containing tobacco or nicotine as food ingredients, said the source.

Meanwhile, a source has informed that certain food stalls were forced to close down during the Sangai Festival, 2012, after the said stalls from the state as well as from Bihar and West Bengal were found to have ignored the Food Safety Standards Act, 2006 and rules and regulation, 2011.

Drive against impure food items from today

JAIPUR: With Diwali round the corner, the health department is set to launch a campaign against adulterated food items from Monday.

If any person is found involved in selling or manufacturing adulterated food items, he will face action under Food Safety and Standard Act 2006. The campaign would continue till November 5.

The health department has directed officials in all the districts to constitute teams to inspect the shops and collect samples of the food items.

The officials are being asked to keep an eye on the food items made of milk and diary products as they may be adulterated. Moreover, the department officials will also check if duplicate items of reputed companies are being sold in the market. Action will also be taken against the owners who keep their shops unhygienic.

Health department will also take samples of food items including milk, mawa, sweets, paneer, vegetable oil, dry fruits, spices, ice creams, tea, toffees, biscuits and pickles.

The department has directed the officials in each district to inspect at least 8-10 shops and restaurants daily and send reports. Moreover, in districts like Alwar, Bharatpur and Dholpur which shares boundary with other states, the health department will be more alert and the officials are directed to inspect more than 10 shops and restaurants daily.

PFNDAI organises food safety systems and regulations seminar in Mumbai

The Protein Food & Nutrition Development Association of India (PFNDAI) organised a seminar on food safety systems and regulations at Courtyard by Marriott, Andheri, Mumbai on October 12, 2013. It focussed on such topics as food safety management systems – best practices and latest developments; regulations regarding trans-fats and implications, and product approval – problems and solutions.

The speakers included J I Lewis, regulatory affairs committee, PFNDAI; Niraj Raje, senior food assessor, Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance (LRQA); K D Yadav, senior vice president, technical, Kamani Oils, and Prabodh Halde, head – regulatory, Marico.

As the food safety and regulations was the main focus of the seminar, while remarking the seminar, Dr J I Lewis, said, “Neither the industry nor the government adhere to the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA), 2006. We need to start paying more attention to and following the regulations. As far as harmonisation with Codex is concerned, the Act itself is not harmonised.”

“Policy, procedure and practice are the key points which we need to follow as far as harmonisation is concerned. There are no proper policies from the government or the industry. They are expected to be framed by the captains of the food industry,” said Lewis.

Raje said, “There are food-related incidents in India and globally. A recent survey indicated that 1.8 million people die each year due to the consumption of contaminated food and water.”

“It is estimated that there are two billion cases of food-borne illnesses each year. Food safety quality and sustainability should be the priorities in the global food agenda,” he added.

“India faces challenges like geographical diversities, differences in weather conditions, packaging technologies and poor hygienic conditions. We need to understand these and convert them into opportunities,” Raje added.

“Nutritionally, trans-fats – which are widely used in snacks and bakery products – are not good for health and lead to cardio-vascular diseases like diabetes,” Yadav said.

“If we see the global scenario of trans-fats, the European Union (EU) stipulated that nutritional claims be declared on nutritional labels. However, Denmark was the only country that put a limit to trans-fats,” he added.

Halde said, “India conducts trade in more than 10,000 food products. The differences between food and drugs are narrowing, hence we must make sure the food we eat is safe.”

“As far as the product approval system is concerned, we must concentrate on clarity, time frame, cost, clear guidelines, small changes in formulations that need re-approval, product approvals linked to licencing and imported foods,” he added.

Technological function, specifications, methods of manufacturing, safety information, regulatory status and method analysis were Halde's tips for new product approval.