Lessons For Bakeries From Maggi Fiasco

Maggi  fiasco  has been eye opener  for  food operators  who have been taking lightly the powers /provisions  of  food regulator and law.

Bakeries must  take lessons from  entire  episode where  Nestle  has to  make loss worth  Rs 400 crore on product  recall , worth thousand of rupees on  destroying  these recalled packs . Not to mention the sale  loss and  worst  the consumer trust .

Nestle was  found to be violating  two  critical laws
 
1. Misleading  Labelling - No MSG
   Harmful  impact of  Mono sodium Glumate  it might  result  into Headache , Sweating , Numbness, Nausea   etc 

2.  Excess of  Lead presence in the Maggi
 Excess lead  consumption might  result into  decreased growth of  muscle  and bones . Lead  also          hamper  child brain development


Bakeries to  take note  of following

Nestle-Maggi

Manufacturer /Producer
Nestle  is this case  has  shown slow response  to the  reports coming out with  different  corners of the country were  samples  were  checked and  MSD  and Lead  presence  were confirmed above  permissible limits .
Over confidence over  its own  lab and  test procedures has let them down  .
Its surprising that  the  systems adopted  by Food operators  needs to be  validated by third party/Independent  authorities in time to time
Interpretation of laws  in their own way . Nestle  claim to that noodles  and  masala maker  are   one complete  set  was erroneous



Regulator
Its  surprising that for  last 30 years   the govt labs /officials 
has never  warned or issues warning to Nestle  on MSD  or Lead presence  over the permissible  levels
Before banning the Maggi  govt officials  should have given chance to company  to  show case its  defence  for the violations
Banning  entire products  from  production in arbitary would have not stood   the courts  of the land 
Establishing  Labs  for  tests and validation which need to be created near  vicinity  of production /manufacturers  areas .


Consumers
Consumers  need to be alert on their favorite  food products  especially the packaged food on following front.
More  care  need to be taken for products meant  for Kids and Children .
Critical aspects on Food labels
Shelf life
Ingredients
Allergen
Taste /Odour
Dangerous ingredients - eg Lead

Food Safety And Standards Act Comes Into Effect From 5th Aug 2011

 FSSAI Act 2006  passed by  Indian  parliament to streamline  food safety related issues  under single authority and  rules .Its notification  has been delayed for months  due one or the other reason has been  finally being put in effect  from 5th Aug 2011.

Food manufacturers , suppliers  , vendors  ,eateries , storage , distribution , imports and exports, food services and other related businesses  would be governed by new rules under FSSAI  Rules 2011 .


The Food Safety and Standards Regulations, 2011

The Food Safety and Standards Regulations, 2011 has been notified in the Gazette of India dated 1st Aug 2011. these Regulations shall come in force on or after 5th Aug 2011

    Food safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food businesses) regulation, 2011
    Food Safety and standards (Packaging and Labelling) regulation, 2011
    Food safety and standards (Food product standards and Food Additives) regulation, 2011 (part I)
    Food safety and standards( Food product standards and food additives) regulation, 2011 (part II)
    Food safety and standards (Prohibition and Restriction on sales) regulation, 2011
    Food safety and standards (contaminants, toxins and residues) regulation, 2011
    Food Safety and Standards (Laboratory and sampling analysis) regulation, 2011

The Food Safety and standards Rules, 2011   

The Food Safety and Standards Rules, 2011 has been notified in the Gazette of India vide G.S.R.No:-362-(E) dated 5th May, 2011. These rules shall come in to force after three months from the date of publication in the official gazette. (i.e. 5th August, 2011).



Copies could be downloaded  from   fssai  website
 www.fssai.gov.in

FSSAI  brings  licensing and adulteration  laws

FSSAI Appoints Authorised Officer For Chennai Port

Food Safety and Standards Authority of  India  has started appointing authorised officers for port clearance to  imported food stuff landing up at different ports in India . Notification also mentions that  Authorised officer would also handle the role of Port Health Officer as defined in PFA Act 1954.

Chennai  Port gets its first Authorised Officer Mr G Srinivasan under the FSSAI Act ,2006.Any matter related to clearance of  imported  food stuff may  be now addressed to Authorised Officer instead of Port Health officer .


Source : www.fssai.gov.in

FSSAI brings rules for licensing and adulteration under fssai act 2006

Just  a reminder  to all  Indian bakery manufacturer s that  the new act  of food safety and standards 2006   is effective  since  Jan2010 . Please  ensure your firm registration with authorities in proper category .

Article
Around one lakh cases related to food adulteration are pending in courts. The conviction rate of these cases is only 1%, said PI Suvrathan, chairman, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. The prime reason for the low conviction rate was faulty designing of the law under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, which was based on sample testing of the final product. If the sample was found adulterated by the food inspector, the food manufacturer was taken to the court. However, he would manage to go free if he proved that circumstances other than manufacturing were responsible for adulteration. For example, the way the product was transported or stored. This allowed him to evade from the 3-6 months jail term as prescribed under the PFA Act.




The laboratories that tested these samples too were not properly equipped. “Every country should have protocols which are uniformly applied to the entire laboratories, “said Suvrathan. The food manufacturer used the loophole in the law to pass on the blame to someone else. However, with the FSSAI coming up, the method of law implementation will change radically. The FSSAI will put the responsibility of food safety on the manufacturer and not the government or the law-enforcing agency. The prime responsibility would lie on the manufacturer and secondary responsibility on the food handler. In case an offence is committed, the manufacturer will be given an opportunity to rectify his product. If the act is repeated, then a warning or suspension may take place.



Said Suvrathan, “For the first time science-based protocols are being laid down. We are developing a simplified system of safety standards which will be a part of the licensing regulation. Around 5,000 food professionals will be accredited who can assist manufacturers in auditing, certifying food units and helping them understand safety laws. The role of the regulating agency will be not only to inspect but also to achieve food safety through interaction with school, colleges, panchayats, corporations and all the stake-holders.



With the FSS Act, the role of food inspector will be replaced by the food safety officer. Also, till now food manufacturers had to comply under various licences proposed under different Acts like the FPO, MPO, etc. Now, all licensing will be integrated in one licence known as the FSSA licence. FSSAI will be licensing all the larger units like milk companies producing above 50,000 litres a day, meat processing units etc. The rest of the units will be licensed by states, in turn by districts, municipal corporations, panchayats etc. Smaller units with monthly income up to one lakh rupees a year or limited quantity of production can simply go for registration and not licensing.



Also, for the first time the FSSAI has introduced the rule that if the regulating authority fails to respond within 60 days of application of licence/registration, then the food manufacturer can go ahead and start operations without approval/registration. Thus the responsibility has been shifted to the regulator, said Suvrathan.

Date  12.03.2010
Source: http://www.fnbnews.com/
Author :Irum Khan

link to fssai : http://www.fssai.gov.in/

FSSAI to issue Integrated license for all food products w.e.f Jan2010

FSSAI ( Food Safety and Standards Authority of India ) set up by government of India in 2006 to monitor entire food safety issues and a single authority to handle legal and statutory requirements for rules and guidelines for entire food supply chain . FSSAI has declared that they would issue a single integrated license to the manufacturers for their manufacturing processes .
Earlier food manufacturers were subjected to plethora of acts and laws e.g PFA Act , Weight and measurement Act ,Act for milk , Act for Edible Oils , Act for meat processing units etc .These laws would be merged into single entity and would be implemented in phased effective from January next year .

The licence for the larger industries would be issued from the government of India while the state governments will issue the licence for smaller industries. 'Since licences for smaller industries were issued by bodies like panchayats and municipalities, we are now working on getting all these integrated into one licence,' Mr Suvrathan said. Mr Suvrathan is the CEO of the FSSAI .

FSSAI is working on comprehensive Act which is being formulated with analysing present standrads in other countries and Codex Alimentarius.Each sectors has been studied and standards matched with best practises across the globe .

Labelling and Advertising laws are also under review .

source :IANS

Food Safety and Standard Authority Of India - Role s and Resposibility

The Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI)has been established under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 which consolidates various acts & orders that have hitherto handled food related issues in various Ministries and Departments. FSSAI has been created for laying 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.

Highlights of the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006
Various central Acts like

• Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954
• Fruit Products Order , 1955,
• Meat Food Products Order , 1973,
• Vegetable Oil Products (Control) Order, 1947
• Edible Oils Packaging (Regulation)Order 1988,
• Solvent Extracted Oil,
• De- Oiled Meal and Edible Flour (Control) Order,1967
• Milk and Milk Products Order, 1992

etc will be repealed after commencement of FSS Act, 2006.
The Act also aims to establish a single reference point for all matters relating to food safety and standards, by moving from multi- level, multi- departmental control to a single line of command. To this effect, the Act establishes an independent statutory authority – the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India with head office at Delhi. Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the State Food Safety Authorities shall enforce various provisions of the Act.

Duties and functions of the Authority
FSSAI has been mandated by the FSS Act, 2006 for performing the following functions:

• Framing of Regulations to lay down the Standards and guidelines in relation to articles of food and specifying appropriate system of enforcing various standards thus notified.
• Laying down mechanisms and guidelines for accreditation of certification bodies engaged in certification of food safety management system for food businesses.
• Laying down procedure and guidelines for accreditation of laboratories and notification of the accredited laboratories.
• To provide scientific advice and technical support to Central Government and State Governments in the matters of framing the policy and rules in areas which have a direct or indirect bearing of food safety and nutrition .
• Collect and collate date regarding food consumption, incidence and prevalence of biological risk, contaminants in food, residues of various, contaminants in foods products, identification of emerging risks and introduction of rapid alert system.
• Creating an information network across the country so that the public, consumers, Panchayats etc receive rapid, reliable and objective information about food safety and issues of concern.
  Provide training programmes for persons who are involved or intend to get involved in food businesses.
• Contribute to the development of international technical standards for food, sanitary and phyto-sanitary standards.
• Promote general awareness about food safety and food standards.

Bakery manufacturers need to follow up with food authority for labelling , adultrants , additives and their permissible levels etc .