Mar 30, 2017
FSSAI performance comes under CAG scanner
The CAG audit of FSSAI comes in the backdrop of the food regulator’s controversial Maggi ban in 2015 under the helm of former chief Yudhvir Singh Malik
New Delhi: In a first, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) is doing a comprehensive performance audit of the country’s food regulator.
The audit of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) comes against the backdrop of the food regulator’s controversial decision to ban manufacturing and sales of Maggi noodles—a popular snack sold by Swiss company Nestle in India—in 2015 under the helm of former FSSAI chief executive Yudhvir Singh Malik.
CAG’s audit is looking at issues such as how FSSAI fixes standards, finalizes regulations, approves products, ensures compliance and conducts surveillance.
“This is a fairly comprehensive audit and is being done for the first time since the regulator came into existence,” said a government official requesting anonymity.
FSSAI was set up in August 2011 under the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006. It has powers to lay down standards for food articles and to regulate their manufacturing, storage, distribution, sale and import. Some of its activities include licencing and surveillance of food and beverages outlets, enforcement of safety regulations across registered food vendors and ensuring safety of imported food items, their standards and labelling.
Pawan Kumar Agarwal, chief executive officer of FSSAI, confirmed the development.
“This started last year and the exit meeting is likely sometime next month. After that, CAG will submit its report to the Parliament. And it’ll be made available to public. Not just FSSAI, the audit includes the food safety offices of the states. This is not a matter of concern. Rather, what comes out of the report will help us in improving our work,” Agarwal said.
A CAG spokesperson said: “A performance audit of FSSAI is being done. No date has been yet decided for the exit meeting.” He declined to elaborate further.
Performance auditing is focused on improving good performance in public administration by examining whether public programmes and services achieve the principles of economy, efficiency and effectiveness and identifying conditions or practices that hamper performance and enable the auditor to make suitable recommendations, according to CAG’s website.
Malik, who came down hard on most of the multinational food and beverages companies operating in India during his short tenure of about a year (October 2014-September 2015), was shifted a month after the Bombay high court overturned the ban on Maggi.
After the crackdown on Maggi, questions were raised on FSSAI’s capabilities and operations including things like product approval process, one of the primary things the regulator used to do. The Bombay high court in July 2015 asked FSSAI to justify its actions against the noodle brand. On 13 August 2015, the Bombay high court set aside the ban imposed by FSSAI on Maggi noodles and asked Nestlé to retest samples at three laboratories certified by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL). On 5 November, Nestlé India said its Maggi noodles received clearance from three laboratories certified by NABL and relaunched the popular snack on 9 November 2015.
“An audit like this will eventually help the organization enhance its performance. It would find out the loopholes, highlight what the regulator should do to cover up those. It is a good thing,” said Rajat Wahi, partner and head of consumer markets at consulting firm KPMG in India. He added there are questions regarding FSSAI’s capabilities and whether it has the capacity to ensure safe food for a country as big as India with its limited manpower. “Nobody knows if the laboratories it has are sufficient and capable of carrying out testing,” he said.
Training of hoteliers for food safety begins at Pune, Nagpur
MUMBAI: Hotels and restaurants association, western India (HRAWI) with the help of FSSAI and food business operators has already begun training people. In its first leg, the association has successfully concluded the certification programmes at Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur and plans to conduct similar programmes in various cities across Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and the Union Territories of Daman, Diu & Silvassa in the coming months.
"The sessions in Mumbai and Pune turned out to be very successful. It was interesting to note that many hotels and restaurants were aware of the rules and regulations but weren't sure about how exactly to action on them. With Dr V Pasupathy to guide and help them, a lot of queries got addressed and we now have a solution to the grey areas. The sessions include role plays which have helped us to a large extent in understanding how the things may practically unfold once we are on the floor. We are certain that this exercise will benefit our members tremendously and will make them better equipped to become compliant. Also this will go a long way in instilling trust and confidence in our discerning guests who will be able to easily identify with the International Standards that they may have experienced anywhere else in the world," concludes Mr Gurbaxish Singh Kohli, Sr. Vice President, HRAWI.
Activist slams Coca-Cola's hygiene training for street vendors
New Delhi, Mar 29 Criticising the move by India's food regulator to join hands with Coca-Cola to teach street vendors about hygiene, a green body today said the contract should be cancelled as it was against the country's interests
New Delhi, Mar 29 Criticising the move by India's food regulator to join hands with Coca-Cola to teach street vendors about hygiene, a green body today said the contract should be cancelled as it was against the country's interests.
"First, we as citizens of India have the right to know on what basis this contract was allotted to Coca-Cola. Given their past record how did this corporation be given the contract?" said Vandana Shiva, founder of 'Navdanya' under Mahila Anna Swaraj Network.
She alleged that given Coca-Cola's track record of pollution, contamination, water theft, food un-safety, and blatant transgression of Indian environmental laws, it does not qualify to teach Indians about Food Safety.
"We know this is an egregious step taken under corporate pressure by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Far from bringing food safety, this will ruin the diversity of India's street foods and will victimise the honest small street vendors of India, who for generations have been giving us taste and health," said Shiva.
Food regulator FSSAI recently tied up with Coca-Cola India to train 50,000 street food vendors over the next three years and plans to rope in other players like ITC and Mondelez under its 'Clean Street Food' campaign.
FSSAI is also looking to bring other companies such as Yum Restaurants, and tetra pak under the project. The regulator had collaborated with FMCG major Nestle to train street vendors in Goa last year.
FSSAI under fire for Coca-Cola alliance
The move to rope in Coca-Cola by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for imparting training to street vendors to ensure safe and nutritious food has run into a rough weather as activists have raised their eyebrows over the initiative.
Dubbing the food regulator's partnership antithetical to its mission, Amit Srivastava of IndiaResource Centre said, "The step is misguided and must be scrapped. The FSSAI should not enter into partnerships with entities it is supposed to regulate as it ensures conflicts of interest."
"It is now widely recognised around the world that vast majority of Coca-Cola products are neither safe nor nutritious and Coca-Cola is the least qualified company to provide input on food safety and healthy nutrition," said Srivastava, who has been spearheading a global campaign against the soft drink major over exploitative usage of groundwater.
"Coca-Cola is a gross violator in India and remained the target of many communities for creating water shortages and pollution," he added.
Noted environmentalist Vandana Shiva has also condemned the FSSAI's contract with Coca-Cola and other MNCs to teach Indian street vendors about hygiene and food safety. "Given Coca-Cola track record of contamination, water theft, blatant transgression of Indian environmental laws in the past and expulsions from the country, they are not even qualified to teach Indians about food safety. We request FSSAI chairman to cancel the contract as this is against India's interests and unjustly imposes industrial standards on small scale vendors, artisanal producers and women," Shiva said.
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