DINAMANI NEWS

Waste not, just eat it

UN estimates global leftover food products enough to feed 3.3 billion people

A lot of food is wasted in our houses, restaurants, supermarkets and at social events.

More than a decade ago, a Taiwanese friend took me to an all-you-can-eat seafood restaurant during one of my visits to Taipei. We had to take raw food materials from the refrigerators and boil them in the individual ovens placed in the dining tables before eating. However, there was something else that amazed me more. According to the restaurant rule, one needed to pay a penalty for leftover or wasted food, which was charged according to its weight.

A seafood restaurant called Hachikyo in Sapporo, Japan also imposes a fine if you do not finish your meal. The explanation is that the fishermen work in harsh and dangerous conditions. It is forbidden to waste even one grain of rice in your bowl as a mark of gratitude. The fine really works; hardly anyone leaves food unfinished.

The consciousness for not wasting food is slowly becoming more pronounced in this part of the world. In early 2019, a Telangana restaurant named Kedari Food Court was in the news for following a ‘carrot and stick’ policy to restrict food wastage. It would charge a fine of Rs 50 for wasting food, but give a reward of Rs 10 for a finished meal. Interestingly, the owner observed that people going there had become very careful not to waste food, and as a result, the number of times that the penalty was imposed had come down.

According to a Condé Nast Traveler report, several restaurants in Germany have started imposing a fine on customers failing to finish their meals. In 2016, Christian Schmidt, who was then Germany’s agriculture minister, said that the country would have an ambitious strategy to halve food waste by 2030.

A lot of food is wasted in our houses, restaurants, supermarkets and at social events. Upon learning that 40 per cent of the food produced in the United States of America ultimately gets discarded, the Canadian filmmaking couple, Grant Baldwin and Jenny Rustemeyer, made the entertaining documentary, Just Eat It: A Food Waste Story (2014), where they conducted a six-month experiment of eating only food that is discarded or will be discarded. Several food activists interviewed in the documentary spoke about the flimsy reasons for food wastage — largely aesthetic and economic.

Let us consider the case of the United Kingdom in 2017. About 6,00,000 tonnes of food in the restaurant business — a third of total production — is wasted every year in the UK. For every meal eaten in a restaurant, nearly 500 grams of food is wasted — through preparation, spoilage and leftovers on diners’ plates. According to the Waste and Resources Action Programme, food waste costs UK restaurants around £682 million per year, which has a huge financial and environmental impact. The US wastes $165 billion worth of food a year; 15 per cent of the wastage comes from restaurants.

The United Nations found that “global leftover food products are enough to feed 3.3 billion people”. Several food waste reduction programmes worked effectively in different parts of the world. These include waste-fed pigs in Japan, and a garden education curriculum in New Orleans. A disposal programme has reduced household food waste by 30 per cent in South Korea: food waste recycling devices installed in many areas automatically weigh the discarded food and disposal fees are billed based on the weight of the food waste that a family generates.

Food wastage in India is also immense. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India was reportedly drafting rules to check wastage at restaurants and social events such as weddings, and was dealing with issues such as hygiene and transportation of the leftover food. The Delhi government was also preparing a draft policy to keep a check on food wastage at social events in the capital. Public consciousness is important; so is the strict imposition of fines. For example, charging small amounts for plastic bags has drastically reduced their use in US supermarkets. Food, after all, must go into our stomachs, not garbage bins.

FSSAI asks food operators to be aware of fake websites

Delhi, Jan 9 (PTI) Food safety regulator FSSAI on Thursday appealed food business operators (FBOs) to be aware of fake websites being operated for providing registration and licensing services.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) also said it will not be responsible for loss or damage suffered by the FBO on account of deficiency of services by such websites.

FBOs can apply for licence or registration only through the FSSAI portal.

"FSSAI appeals to public to exercise care and caution while applying for FSSAI licence and registration as food business operator. Only FSSAI''s licensing portal should be used for registration/ license application," FSSAI Chief Executive Officer Pawan Agarwal said in a statement.

In case of need for any help, applicants may approach the regional offices of FSSAI or jurisdictional designated officer or food safety officer for guidance, details of which are available at www.fssai.gov.in, he added.

FSSAI said it has come to its notice that a number of websites are operating with the domain name comprising the word ''FSSAI'' along with suffix or affix ''registration'', ''license'', etc. Some of such websites also use the logo of FSSAI.

The regulator has not authorised any entity to register its website with the domain name comprising the word ''FSSAI'' or to use its name and logo, or represent FSSAI as such, it said.

In the event that any one intends to avail the services of any such online websites for registration or licence as food business operator, it is advisable that background check of such third party should be carried out with regard to authenticity or reliability of its services, it added.

FSSAI has also launched a Food Safety Mitra Scheme wherein Digital Mitras are being trained to assist FBOs for online filings related to licensing and registration, at nominal charges.

FSSAI urges food business operators to ensure use of official portal to obtain licenses, registrations

Food Standards and Safety Authority of India (FSSAI) has urged food business operators to ensure they use the regulator’s official portal to apply for licenses and registration. This came after the regulator observed that a number of websites are operating with a domain name consisting of the regulator's name and words such as ‘registration’ or ‘license’ as suffix or prefix. It also noted that some of these websites also wrongly display the FSSAI logo.

“FSSAI is a statutory body constituted under the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India Act, 2006. It has not authorised any entity to register its website with the domain name comprising the word ‘FSSAI’ or to use its name and logo, or represent FSSAI as such,” the food safety authority said in a statement on Thursday.

Sources said that the regulator has received complaints that some websites sporting FSSAI's name in their domain name, claim to offer consulting services to food businesses to obtain FSSAI licenses and registrations.

FSSAI in its statement emphasized that applications to obtain FSSAI registration or licenses "can only be made at the official food licensing and registration portal of the food safety authority."

Pawan Agarwal, CEO, FSSAI said that food business operators must exercise care and caution while applying for FSSAI license or registration. He also added that they must use only the food safety authority's official licensing portal for such applications.

Recently, FSSAI has also launched a Food Safety Mitra Scheme through which Digital Mitras or individuals with IT skills are being trained to assist food business operators for online filings related to licensing and registration for a nominal charge. “Public is encouraged to use the services of Food Safety Mitras,” the official statement added.

41 booked under NSA in 6 months for food adulteration in Madhya Pradesh

While no adulteration was found in 2,885 samples, 1,606 others were found violating the food safety standards.

BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh government has invoked stringent National Security Act (NSA) against 41 persons in the last six months for alleged adulteration of food, milk and dairy products, an official said on Thursday.

Besides them, cases have also been registered against 108 people under different sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) during this period for allegedly adulterating food or selling it, the official said.

The action was taken under a special drive, which the state government has been running since July 19 last year.

"As part of the drive, we collected 11,536 food samples and sent them for testing. Of them, the test reports of 4,491 samples are out," Madhya Pradesh Food and Drug Department Joint Controller D K Nagendra said.

He said that while no adulteration was found in 2,885 samples, 1,606 others were found violating the food safety standards.

Besides this special drive against food adulteration, the state government has also cracked a whip on the traders, who are found ripening fruits using toxic chemicals.

FDA shuts over a dozen meat shops in Kolhapur dist

Kolhapur: The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has shut down over a dozen mutton shops across the district over the last 30 days for failing to comply with guidelines, said M S Kembalkar, assistant commissioner of the FDA’s Kolhapur unit. He added that the licence of one mutton shop from the city was suspended while in Jaysingpur, the licences of nine shops have been cancelled. Four shops were shut down in Kagal last week due to non-compliance.

According to the FDA official, the action was taken under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. There are around 550 mutton shops across the district, while Kolhapur has over 150 shops. Kembalkar said the guidelines for meat shop owners include an elaborate list of dos and don’ts which are frequently overlooked. 

“Meat shops near religious places and vegetable markets are strictly forbidden. According to the rules, meat sellers have to remain beyond a 50-metre radius of religious places. They must also ensure their shops are located at least 100 metres from the main gate of such places. Meat sellers cannot slaughter any animal inside a shop, and have to put up curtains or tinted glass so that the meat is not visible to the public.” 

He further said that all people working at meat shops must obtain health certificates from government doctors. The meat will also have to be certified by authorised veterinarians. The FDA is the issuing authority for certificates in urban as well as rural areas. “Meat vendors have also been directed not to slaughter any ill, milch or pregnant animal. All the knives and other implements must be made of steel and there should be no trace of rust on them. Meat shops must have proper waste disposal arrangements and should keep a record of all meat purchased from slaughterhouses. Moreover, the fresh orders specify that meat can only be transported in insulated freezer vehicles from slaughterhouses and should be stored in refrigerators with transparent doors,” said Kembalkar.

“We are aware that this is an exhaustive list of guidelines, but meat shop owners need to comply with it. If, during an inspection, rules are found to be violated, the meat in the shop can be destroyed and the shop can lose its licence. A fine is also imposed,” he said.

FDA guidelines for meat shops

Ill, milch or pregnant animals are not to be slaughtered

Knives, other implements must be made of steel and must be rust-free

Proper waste disposal arrangements are necessary

Record of all meat purchased from slaughterhouses must be maintained

Meat can only be transported in insulated freezer vehicles from slaughterhouses and should be stored in refrigerators with transparent doors.

Meat shops need to be equipped with geysers

Shops must be beyond a 50-metre radius of religious places

• Animals must not be slaughtered inside a shop; curtains or tinted glass must be installed so the meat is not visible