Food safety is everyone’s business: WHO

Common cause: Access to safe food is key to sustaining life and promoting good health. 

An estimated 600 million cases of food-borne diseases occur annually around the world

“Food safety is everyone’s business,’’ says the World Health Organisation (WHO) which has released figures that estimate 600 million cases of food-borne diseases occur annually worldwide. This translates into one in 10 people falling ill after eating contaminated food.

“Food safety is an increasing threat to human health. Children under 5 years of age carry 40% of the food-borne disease burden with 1,25,000 deaths every year,’’ said WHO.

A note issued by the organisation said the first-ever World Food Safety Day was adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in December 2018 and this year it would be celebrated on June 7 with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) facilitating member-States’ effort to celebrate it.

“Access to sufficient amounts of safe and nutritious food is key to sustaining life and promoting good health. Food-borne diseases impede socio-economic development by straining health care systems and harming national economies, tourism and trade,’’ it said.

Food is the starting point for our energy, our health and our well-being. We often take for granted that it is safe, but in an increasingly complex and interconnected world where food value chains are growing longer, standards and regulations are that much more important in keeping us safe.

“The way in which food is produced, stored, handled and consumed affects the safety of our food. Complying with global food standards, establishing effective regulatory food control systems, including emergency preparedness and response, providing access to clean water, applying good agriculture practices (terrestrial, aquatic, livestock, horticulture), strengthening the use of food safety management systems by food business operators, and building capacities of consumers to make healthy food choices are some ways in which governments, international organisations, scientists, the private sector and civil society can work to ensure food safety,” the health organisation noted.

Food Regulator Wants Exports on Its Plate, Too

FSSAI also suggests liberalisation measures to help cos set up businesses more quickly; proposal to be sent to ministry of health & family welfare soon

New Delhi:

India’s regulator for the foods industry has proposed changes to the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSS Act), seeking to bring within its purview export consignments that have hitherto remained unregulated by a domestic agency.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has also suggested a slew of liberalisation measures, including simplification in the process of acquiring food-business licences, to help companies set up businesses more quickly and easily.

The FSSAI proposal will be sent to the ministry of health and family welfare in the next few days. While FSSAI and the ministry could bring in some of the changes by tweaking regulations, an amendment to the act will require Parliament’s approval.

At present, export of foods does not fall under the purview of the FSS Act. However, the ministry of commerce and export promotion agencies have been seeking expansion in the scope of the foods-related law, as several export markets require licences from the Indian food regulator.

“This is why we want to bring exports under the FSS Act,” said a senior FSSAI official, who did not want to be named.

India’s agri- and processed-food exports rose to ₹1.28 lakh crore in FY19 from ₹1.20 lakh crore in FY18.

FSSAI also wants to do away with the current dual control of the state and the Centre. All businesses involved in manufacturing, processing, retailing, and transporting food services will need only state licences. Companies with multi-state operations will require a licence from the Centre. At present, businesses have to get licences from both the state and the Centre if their size were to cross a critical threshold.

FSSAI has also suggested getting rid of the annual licence renewal process, which witnesses massive delays owing to the staff crunch at FSSAI and state-level food regulators. Instead, businesses will be required to give annual declarations, with some annual fee.

Liabilities in case of an offence will also be defined, according to the proposal. “In case of a labelling error, only the manufacturer will be held liable, unlike now wherein the retailer and the transporter are also held accountable,” said the official, who did not want to be named.

The proposal also suggests relaxing rules for agents and delivery persons at direct marketing agencies and e-commerce companies, which were earlier required to obtain licences from the authority. However, the food business will have to maintain records of delivery personnel and will be accountable in case of any offence.

FSSAI has proposed bringing animal feeds – cattle, poultry, shrimp, fish - under its ambit, in order to control the quality of milk and meat. “During a survey on milk varieties available in market, we found 9.9% of the samples unsafe, majority of them were failing in aflatoxin which is due to animal feed. Unless we have feed control, we can’t control milk quality,” said the officer cited above.

Health teams collect samples of food items

Officials of the Health Department inspect milk products in Kapurthala on Monday. 

Jalandhar, June 3

Starting at 6.30 am with the team of Food Administration Kapurthala, headed by Dr Harjot Pal Singh, Assistant Commissioner, Food and Balwinderjit, Deputy Director from the Dairy Development Board, Kapurthala, along with Satnam Singh Food Safety Officer, carried out a drive against the persons selling spurious milk and milk products (MMP) today under Mission Tandrust Punjab.The team set up a naka at Dhilwan the team checked vehicles carrying food items, especially MMP. Samples were also seized from Sidhwan Dona area.

The food business operators, dealing in milk and milk products were warned to keep and sell only pure and unadulterated MMPs. The team collected eight samples, including three milk samples, one soda, one Haldi powder, one sample of jam, one of chocolate and one rusk sample.These samples have been despatched to the State Food Laboratory, Kharar and the report of the analysis will be made available to the department as soon as possible.

Members of the teams said legal action would be initiated in the court of law against the offenders as per the report of analysis of the State Food Lab, Kharar under the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 (Regulations 2011).

Big relief for foodies! Maharashtra FDA issues 83-point checklist for fast food chains

Restaurants serving fast foods like pizzas, burgers, noodles will now need to have to really get their kitchens spruced up. According to a Zee Business TV report, Maharashtra FDA has mandated all the fast food restaurants to obey an 83-point checklist.

According to a Zee Business TV report, Maharashtra FDA has mandated all the fast food restaurants to obey an 83-point checklist.

Restaurants serving fast foods like pizzas, burgers, noodles will now need to have to really get their kitchens spruced up. According to a Zee Business TV report, Maharashtra FDA has mandated all the fast food restaurants to obey an 83-point checklist, in order to avoid strict action. FDA has also made it clear that failing to follow these guidelines in next two months will attract strict action. The checklist is intended to ensure that the kitchen has a hygienic environment and utensils are washed properly. 

FDA Commissioner, Pallavi Darade told Zee Business TV, ''As per the Schedule 4 of Food Safety Act, the facilities at the restaurants should be compliant with the schedule 4. Right from sanitation to cleanliness, the restaurant should follow the guidelines accordingly. We have handed over the checklist to the food chains, and asked them to follow the 83-point checklist in 1 to 1.5 months.''

The kitchen should have ample space to prepare food, cleanliness should be the priority are some of the primary points in the checklist. The guidelines also state that an injured or ill staff member should not allowed to enter kitchen premises. Also the staff involved in food preparation should have an annual medical checkup. It further says that smoking should be banned in kitchen and raw material should be stored at fixed temperatures. 

While fish and meat items should be cooked at correct temperatures and ingredients, spices should undergo regular lab tests. The kitchen should go through regular pest control measures, states checklist. 

The checklist also ensures that the water used for food preparation should be boiled, and food should be hot and fresh before giving it to customers. Also in case the food is being delivered to people, the transporting vehicle should be clean too. Sauces and syrups like ketchups and chutneys should be delivered in containers and raw materials should be purchased only from FDA registered vendors.

Odisha food commission seeks better testing facilities

BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha State Food Commission has urged the government to strengthen food testing facilities in the state. 

In a letter to the health and family welfare department, the commission's chairperson, Ranglal Jamuda, while describing the current situation of food testing facilities in the state, has asked for immediate recruitment of additional staff and opening of more food testing laboratories.

"There is only one state public health laboratory in Bhubaneswar. Even this is not well-equipped. It is under-staffed. Though the building has been constructed for installation of necessary equipment, procurement is progressing at a slow pace," reads the letter of Jamuda.

He said the sanctioned technical positions were grossly inadequate and that the field formation of the food safety organisation was weak. "At the district-level, only one post of food safety officer has been sanctioned. In many districts, this post is vacant," stated the chairperson in his letter to the department.

According to the National Food Security Act of 2013, food samples from different government schemes, including mid-day meal, should be collected on each working day and sent for a test to the food testing laboratory. Besides, officials should collect samples from other food business operators to check their quality.

"The enforcement is very weak in the absence of adequate staff and logistics. The staff at the district-level do not get vehicles to undertake tours. The situation is such that the test reports for even the limited number of mid-day meal samples are received after six months," another commission official said.

The commission chairperson in his request to the health department commissioner suggested that besides strengthening the existing laboratory, steps should be taken to set up more laboratories at the medical colleges. There could also be well-designed courses in each medical college so that the passouts could help strengthen the system, Jamuda said.

Besides testing food samples from government schemes and private food business operators, the State Food Commission is also entrusted with the task of collecting water samples to check their quality. "There has to be a policy decision at the government-level to make the system effective," social worker Alok Kar said.

A senior health and family welfare department official said they had received the letter from the commission and forwarded the same to the government for consideration at a higher level.

"The matter will be discussed and adequate steps will be taken to strengthen the food testing facilities in the state," the official said.