Govt sets up special Food Safety Tribunals for Jammu, Kashmir

Srinagar, Feb 24:
The government has established Food Safety Appellate Tribunals (FSAT) for Kashmir and Jammu divisions to look at the cases related food safety matters.
The order was issued by the Commissioner/Secretary Health and Medical Education Department, M K Bhandari, who is also the Commissioner Food Safety in J&K.
As per the government order, the two Food Safety Appellate Tribunals have been established for Kashmir and Jammu divisions to hear appeals from the decisions of the Adjudicating Officers under section 68 of the Food Safety and Standard Act (FSSA) 2006.
The Additional Deputy Commissioners of every district have been designated as Adjudicating Officer as per the FSSA 2006.
Officials told Rising Kashmir that the decision was taken in wake of large number of pending cases related to unsafe, substandard and misbranded food products and items with the District Magistrates and in civil courts.
“The decision will fast-track the process of litigation in cases like substandard and misbranding of food items among others,” they said.
Jammu and Kashmir is one of the few places that would have this tribunal in place.
Appellate tribunals have already been set up in Delhi, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Chattisgarh apart from the union territories of Andaman & Nicobar and Chandigarh.
According to officials, a district or sessions judge (in-service or retired) has been put in charge of the tribunals that would function in both the divisions.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has been in the process of constituting Appellate Tribunals in a number of states for the last couple of years.
“However, the responsibility of setting up the tribunals rested with the state governments while FSSAI would provide the required assistance to complete the process,” added officials.

Are your veggies really safe?

Highlights
• This virtuous vegetable is said to be one of the healthiest food items. It can lower your cholesterol and has cancer fighting features in it. But over eating it could prove harmful.
• Bright and vibrant spinach contains a lot of essential vitamins. But it also contains a chemical called as oxalic acid.

We have only known vegetables to possess amazing nutrional values. Ever wondered if your favourite vegetable might actually be harming you?
Broccoli
This virtuous vegetable is said to be one of the healthiest food items. It can lower your cholesterol and has cancer fighting features in it. But over eating it could prove harmful. It contains chemicals which could stop the production of thyroids and lead to a condition called as Hypothyroidism. Someone already suffering from this condition should stay away from all cruciferous vegetables.
Spinach
Bright and vibrant spinach contains a lot of essential vitamins. But it also contains a chemical called as oxalic acid. Oxalic acid is harmful because it could stop the absorption of calcium and iron in the body and contribute to the formation of kidney stones. Eating raw spinach in salads or any other way can be harmful.



Celery
This is another green vegetable which contains high nutritional value, but eating too much of celery might come with a cost ! This is because celery contains crude fibre, and consumption of too much crude fibre could lead to indigestion. People suffering from gastrointestinal diseases should avoid eating too much of it!

Bell Peppers
If you are eating organically grown bell peppers then you are safe. Bell peppers are capable of retaining pesticides and chemicals so checking the labels while purchasing them and buying only organically grown peppers is a wise option.

Peas
While Peas are rich in fibres and vitamins, they also have high calorie and carbohydrate content. Eating them in small portions would do no harm but excessive consumption could lead to bloating and even weight gain for those watching their diet!

In fact too much consumption of any vegetable could prove to be detrimental. Vegetables should be consumed in proper portions and like any other food item not be over consumed.

ADM stops unauthorized lucky draw contest

Thiruvananthapuram: The food safety department destroyed 15 boxes of ice candies during Attukal pongala on Tuesday. The boxes, each carrying around 75 ice sticks, were destroyed as a follow up to its drive against use of artificial sweeteners in ice candies.
The department had initiated a major drive against the sale of ice and cotton candies after noticing rampant use of artificial sweeteners like saccharine and carcinogenic dulcin. In a drive that started on February 12, the food safety department had closed down three ice manufacturing units that used artificial sweeteners and colours.
Food safety officer A Satish Kumar said that ice candies were brought from a manufacturing unit in Kottayam. "Apart from the sale of ice candies, no other food safety issues were reported during the festival," he said.
The department has successfully brought majority of food distribution units under them by making registration mandatory for all sellers.
ADM stops unauthorized lucky draw contest : The district administration's move to seal down an unauthorized lucky draw contest organized by the Killippalam Poura Samithi at Killippalam Junction made way for minor tension amidst the pious atmosphere of Attukal pongala. The Poura Samithi was conducting the contest for devotees, in which the latter stood chances of winning prizes, including household utensils. The first prize was a Yamaha Ray scooter. Each coupon was prized Rs 20.
When the matter was brought to the notice of district collector Biju Prabhakar, he deputed additional district magistrate T R Azad to inquire into the matter and take action. Azad and team reached the spot but the Samithi members refused to cooperate and they even tried to block him and other officials from carrying out their duty. Following this, more cops rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control. The ADM seized all the coupons and stopped the contest. No police case was registered in this regard till Tuesday night.

Mars recalls Snickers, Milky Way, Celebrations and other chocolates in 55 countries after plastic found in bars

BERLIN: US chocolate maker Mars said on Tuesday it's recalling candy bars and other items in 55 countries in Europe and elsewhere after plastic was found in one of its products.
Roel Govers, spokesman for Mars in the Netherlands, told The Associated Press that the recall affects 55 countries but would not provide further details, saying the company would email a news release later.
Mars in Germany confirmed that it was one of the countries affected, and said in a statement that the recall affected products with "best before" dates from June 19, 2016 to January 8, 2017.
"We have intentionally chosen a long production time frame in order to ensure that all possibly affected products are recalled," the company said in a German-language statement, adding that it was in "close contact" with food safety authorities.
It also did not specify which other countries were affected, and Mars in Germany did not respond to calls or emails. The German news agency dpa cited a Mars Germany spokesman saying the voluntary recall affects products made early this year in the Netherlands.
The Dutch food safety authority posted what it said was a Mars press release on its website, saying a piece of plastic had been found in a product that could lead to choking. It listed affected products as: Mars, Milky Way, Snickers, Celebrations, and Mini Mix.
Mars, Inc. is privately held and based in McLean, Virginia. It also owns the world's largest chewing gum maker, Wm Wrigley Jr Company.
The Mars family owns the secretive company, making it one of the wealthiest families in the US, according to business research company Hoover's.

US FDA hopes for productive conversations on food safety law

The US Food and Drug Administration officials are visiting India to discuss the new law on food safety with the Indian government and industry stakeholders.
The US food and drug regulator is conducting a series of trips abroad including India to update government and industry stakeholders on the bipartisan and landmark FDA Food Safety Modernisation Act, (FSMA), its most sweeping reform to food safety system in 70 years.
"India is of particular importance to the FDA because it is the seventh largest supplier of food to the US. FDA values its partnership with India as US - India continue to advance their ability to prevent food-borne illnesses and enhance the safety of the food supply in both countries," FDA Deputy Commissioner Howard Sklamberg told reporters here.
"We have come here to speak with Indian government regulators and industry stakeholders about the FSMA. This follows a visit eleven months ago, when we signed a MoU with the Centre in order to develop opportunities for cooperative engagement in regulatory and technical matters related to food products, Sklamberg said.
India exports USD 4 billion worth agri, spices and sea food exports to US every year.
"Our office (in India)(is) engaged in technical workshops with Indian regulators, where we engaged in training on food and drug related issues and inspections techniques, good manufacturing practises and the detection of data integrity issues," he added.
FNMA mandates a food safety system that is preventive rather than reactive, and in which foreign food producers are held to the same safety standards as our domestic farmers and food companies.
FSMA is our food safety system in 70 years and we are committed to working with our international partners, as well as consumers and industry, to implement the law in a timely and efficient manner, he added.
Under FSMA's new import safety system, importers in the US are made accountable to US FDA for verifying that their foreign suppliers are using methods to prevent food safety problems that provide the same level of public health protection as those used by their US counterparts.
Under FSMA, this new accountability for importers will be backed up by more overseas inspections by FDA and crucial for the purposes of this trip to India, more active partnership with our foreign government counterparts and with industry stakeholders, he said.

More inspections in store for food exporters to the US PT Jyothi Datta

Mumbai, February 24:
More inspections are in store for food exporters to America, as new final rules under the food safety law there look to hold foreign suppliers to the same level of scrutiny as their US counterparts.
“The Food Safety Modernisation Act is our nation’s most sweeping reform of our food safety system in 70 years,” said Howard Sklamberg, Deputy Commissioner for global regulatory operations with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Focussed on being preventive than reactive, the Act will hold US importers accountable to the FDA “for verifying that their foreign suppliers are using methods to prevent food safety problems” and adhering to the same public health standards, he said at a select media interaction.
This new accountability on importers will be backed up by more overseas inspections.
“We do site inspections now and we will continue to do them. And probably the numbers will increase as imports increase,” Sklamberg told BusinessLine. The USFDA conducts about 100 inspections a year on food facilities in India.
The FDA has an India office. But most India inspections are largely done by FDA personnel from the US, he said, adding, “FDA is staffed to meet its obligations.”
The law places obligations on food producers — whether it’s a farmer, an owner of a food manufacturing plant or someone in the supply chain that exports to the US — to make sure that they follow the right procedures. Inspections will be supplemented by the foreign suppliers verification programme. Foreign suppliers will have to be qualified by spring 2017, so sometime this year Indian food exporters will start having conversations with their US customers, another USFDA official explained.
A suggestion doing the rounds among Indian authorities is that local regulators like the Food Authority be allowed to certify exporters to the US. However, a USFDA official clarified that there were ways for government entities to become auditors and certify.
But they would have to ensure that the practices in the exporting facility met the FSMA requirement. And presently no such certification exists, another official added.