Self-regulation new mantra for country's food security

 

Lucknow

Less then a year after forcing Nestle India to recall samples of Maggi, and runningin with Patanjali Ayurved for manufacturing and selling atta noodles without requisite licenses, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has said it's moving towards a “deregulation“ and “self-compliance“ regime.

As first step in this direction, the country's food regulator has ordered the winding up of its sub-regional offices in Lucknow and Chandigarh, with effect from March 31.

From April 11, FSSAI will carry out its regulatory work; licensing, enforcement and monitoring of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, remotely , from the its headquarters in New Delhi, and four regional offices in Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai, and Guwahati. The closure orders were communicated to the Chandigarh and Lucknow offices through an office order of February 24, signed by director establishment, FSSAI, Rakesh Chandra Sharma. Speaking to TOI, FSSAI chief executive officer, Pawan Kumar Agarwal, said, “The decision to close down sub-regional offices in Lucknow and Chandigarh was a carefully considered one. These offices had limited staff and were not adding value. Our attempt is to downsize and rationalise our resources. We don't want food safety officials to be a nuisance to food businesses, rather we want citizens to have confidence in them.“

Saying inspection was not the way forward in the food industry , and FSSAI was keen to encourage self-regulation and declaration, Agarwal added, “We're using a pragmatic approach, and moving towards a regime of self-compliance. We plan to use technology meaningfully to reach out to businesses and encourage them to self-test and upload results online. Penalties can be issued online for non-compliance. Consumers are also encouraged to be more aware and act as a food safety inspector.“

While deregulation appears to be the keyword, the FSSAI is mandated, at present, under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, to lay down “science-based standards for articles of food and to regulate their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption.“

The Act has been enforced across India from 2011, after the Food Safety and Standards Rules and Regulations, respectively, were notified by the Central government. It governs about 35 lakh food businesses across India of which about 27,000 licenses are issued directly by FSSAI. In comparison to the size of food business, however, the number of food safety officers under FSSAI is woefully low, less than 10%.