Lesson 1

CONSUMER AWARENESS ABOUT

QUALITY AND SAFETY OF DAIRY
FOODS: THE CHANGING SCENARIO
 Introduction
• The food which we eat everyday has tremendous impact on
our physical, mental and spiritual health.
• Currently, food consumption pattern, ever increasing demands
on quality and safety are under continuous transformation and
need critical appraisal to overview and timely adoption of
corrective and preventive action in food supply chain.
• Consumer’s preference of processed food with new
requirements especially minimally processed/ cost effective
foods without chemical preservatives with enhanced functional
and therapeutic features has put up pressure on manufacturer
to adopt all ways and means to ensure quality and safe food to
the consumers.
• These consumer demands are forcing the manufacturer to
implement new quality (ISO 9001:2000) and food safety system
(HACCP) during various stages of supply chain from milch animal to
consumer.

• Consumer movement across the globe has also increased and as a

result export/ import of food products has become more vulnerable
in complying safety requirements of the consumers.

• Globalization of the food supply chain,

• The increasing importance of the Codex Alimentarius Commission

and the obligations emerging from the World Trade Organization
(WTO) Agreements have resulted in
– unprecedented interest in the development of food standards and
regulation, and

– the strengthening of food control infrastructure at the country level .

 Challenges for food control
authorities
• Increasing burden of food borne illness and emergence of new food

borne hazards;
• Rapidly changing technologies in food production, processing and

marketing;
• Developing science-based food control systems with a focus on

consumer protection ;
• International food trade and need for harmonization of food safety and

quality standards;
• Changes in lifestyles, including rapid urbanization and
• Growing consumer awareness of food safety and quality issues and

increasing demand for better information.

National Food Control System
• Effective national food control systems are essential to protect the
health and safety of domestic consumers.
• These are also critical in enabling countries to assure the safety and
quality of their foods entering international trade and to ensure that
imported foods conform to national requirements.
• The new global environment for food trade places considerable
obligations on both importing and exporting countries to strengthen their
food control systems and to implement and enforce risk-based food
control strategies.
• To comply with these international requirements Food Safety and
Standard Act 2006 has been enacted by the government of India to
ensure quality and safe food to the consumers.
 THE ACT……………

The Food Safety & Standards Act 2006 is Act to consolidate the
laws relating to food and to establish the Food Safety and
FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA

Standards Authority of India 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 and for matters connected therewith or
incidental thereto.

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

Any order under Essential Commodities Act, 1955 relating to food.

 SALIENT FEATURE OF THE ACT……………

 To ensure that all food meets consumers’

expectations in terms of nature, substance and
FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA

quality and is not misleadingly presents;

 To provide legal powers and specify offences
in relation to public health and consumers’
interest;
 To shift from regulatory regime to self
compliance through Food Safety Management
system.
 Science based standards
 Proprietary food, novel food, GM food,
dietary supplements, nutraceuticals etc brought
into the ambit of the new act.
 SCOPE OF THE ACT……………

 The Act covers activities throughout the food

FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA

distribution chain, from primary production

through distribution to retail and catering.

 The Act gives the Government powers to

make regulations on matters of food safety.

 The Food Safety & Standards Authority of

India is the principal Government Authority
responsible for preparing specific regulations
under the Act.
 FUNCTIONS OF AUTHORITY (SEC 16)……………

•To regulate, monitor the manufacture, processing, distribution, sale

and import of food to ensure its safety and wholesomeness.
FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA

•To specify standards, guidelines for food articles

•Limits for Food additives, contaminants, veterinary drugs, heavy
metals, mycotoxin, irradiation of food, processing aids.
•Mechanisms & guidelines for accreditation of certification bodies
engaged in FSMS certification
•Quality control of imported food
•Specify food labeling standards including claims on health,
Nutrition, special dietary uses & food category systems
•Scientific advice and technical support to central / state
governments
 Food control
• Food control is defined as a mandatory regulatory activity
of enforcement by national or local authorities to provide
consumer protection and ensure that all foods during
production, handling, storage, processing, and distribution
are safe, wholesome and fit for human consumption;
conform to safety and quality requirements; and are
honestly and accurately labelled as prescribed by law.
• The foremost responsibility of food control is to enforce the
food law(s) protecting the consumer against unsafe, impure
and fraudulently presented food by prohibiting the sale of
food not of the nature, substance or quality demanded by
the purchaser.
• Confidence in the safety and integrity of the food supply is
an important requirement for consumers.
• Food-borne disease outbreaks, involving agents such as
Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes,
Bacillus cereus., coagulase positive S. aureus and
chemical contaminants, highlight problems with food
safety and increase public anxiety that modern farming
systems, food processing and marketing do not provide
adequate safeguards for public health.
Factors which contribute to potential hazards in
foods include
– improper agricultural practices;
– poor hygiene at all stages of the food chain;
– lack of preventive controls in food processing and
preparation operations;
– misuse of chemicals;
– contaminated raw materials, ingredients and water;
inadequate or improper storage, etc.
 Food safety hazards
• Microbiological hazards;

• Xenobiotic residues including synthetic (manmade) pesticides,

drugs, antibiotics, plastics etc.
• Misuse of food additives

• Chemical contaminants, including biological toxin; and

• Adulteration, artificial foods

• The list has been further extended to cover genetically

modified organisms, allergens, veterinary drug residues,
radionucleides and growth promoting hormones used in the
preparation of animal products
 Consumer preference on safe
food
• Expect protection from hazards occurring along the entire food
chain, from primary producer through consumer (often described
as the farm-to-table continuum).
• Protection will only occur if all sectors in the chain operate in an
integrated way and food control systems address all stages of this
chain.
• As no mandatory activity of this nature can achieve its objectives
fully without the cooperation and active participation of all
stakeholders e.g. farmers, industry and consumers, the term Food
Control System is used to describe the integration of a mandatory
regulatory approach with preventive and educational strategies
that protect the whole food chain.
 Ideal food control
•
system
Effective enforcement of mandatory requirements, along
with training and education, community outreach
programmes and promotion of voluntary compliance.
• The introduction of preventive approaches such as the
hazard analysis critical and control point (HACCP) system
have resulted in industry taking greater responsibility for
and control of food safety risks.
• Such an integrated approach facilitates improved consumer
protection, effectively stimulates agriculture and the food
processing industry and promotes domestic and
international food trade.
 Global Considerations
• With an expanding world economy, liberalization of food
trade, growing consumer demand, developments in food
science and technology and improvements in transport and
communication international trade in fresh and processed
food will continue to increase.
• Access of countries to food export markets will continue to
depend on their capacity to meet the regulatory
requirements of importing countries.
• Creating and sustaining demand for their food products in
world markets relies on building the trust and confidence of
importers and consumers in the integrity of their food
What is the Codex Alimentarius
Commission?

 A joint FAO/WHO inter-

governmental body
with 171 member
countries (as of August
2005) plus observers
 Responsible for
implementing
FAO/WHO Joint Food
Standards Programme
since 1962

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
 What is the function of the CAC?

 To protect the health of consumers

 To ensure fair practices in the food trade
 To coordinate food standards work
internationally
 To finalise and publish international
standards, codes of practice and
recommendations in the Codex
Alimentarius

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
The Codex Alimentarius

 ‘Codex Alimentarius’
means ‘Food Code’
 Comprises 14
volumes
 All standards available
at Codex web-site
 Codex standards are
recommended (not
mandated) food
quality and safety
standards
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
How is Codex organised?

 Codex Secretariat located at

FAO HQ (Rome, Italy)
 Executive Committee meets
annually
 Technical committees and
task forces meet every 1 or
2 years
 Regional Coordinating
Committees
 CAC Sessions held every 2
years
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
Structure of the Codex Alimentarius
Commission
C odex
A lim entarius C om m ission

E x e c utiv e C o m m ittee S e c reta riat

G e n era l C o m m itte es C o m m o d ity C o m m itte es R e g ion a l C o m m itte es

(9 ) a n d Ta s k Fo rc es (6 )

A c tiv e C o m m itte es
(7 )

a d h oc T as k Fo rc es
(3 )

C o m m ittee s ad jo urn ed
(4 )

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
How are Codex standards elaborated?

 Commission decides
on new work
 Standards elaborated
in relevant technical
committee
 Procedure for
elaborating standards
facilitates stakeholder
input
 Commission decides
Reports of CAC sessions on adoption of Codex
are published texts
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
 Current Codex final texts

 Food standards – 237

 Codes of Practice – 45
 Guidelines – 33
 Guidelines for limits of contaminants – 25
 Pesticides evaluated – 207
 Limits of pesticide residues – 3274
 Veterinary drugs evaluated – 54
 Limits of veterinary drugs residues – 289
 Food additives evaluated – 1300

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
 Horizontal Codex standards

 Horizontal standards
 Prepared in General subject committees
 Have across-the-board relevance to a number of
commodities
 Work of some Codex Horizontal Committees
is relevant to the contaminants
 Food Additives and contaminants (CCFAC)
• Initiated discussions on need for a Code of Practice on OTA in
coffee and cocoa (April 2005)
 Food Hygiene (CCFH)
 General Principles (CCGP)
 Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification
Systems (CCFICS)
 Methods Analysis and Sampling (CCMAS)
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
 Vertical Codex standards

 Vertical standards
 Vertical standards are those related to a particular
commodity

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
 Codex technical committee sessions

 Open to all member On the Codex web-site:

governments and
observers Codex Home Page
 Participation through
About Codex Meetings and Events Official standards
attendance at
sessions and
Forthcoming m eetings
submission of
comments reports

 Timely circulation of archive reports

announcements and
working documents
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
 Key features of the ‘Codex process’

Scientific advisory bodies

to Codex:
 Joint FAO/WHO Expert
 Science-based Committee on Food
 Participatory Additives (JECFA)
 Joint FAO/WHO Meetings
 Transparent on Pesticide Residues
(JMPR)
 Joint FAO/WHO Expert
Committee on
Microbiological Risk
Assessment (JEMRA)
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
Effective participation in CAC

 National Codex
Structures
 National Codex
Contact Points
 National Codex
Committees
 Regional Codex
Coordinating
Committees

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
 National Codex structures
Codex Alimentarius Commission/
Codex Secretariat

National Codex Contact Point

National
Governments

National Codex
Committee

Industry Groups Scientific

Community
Consumer
Groups
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
 Codex Contact Point (CCP)

 Link between Codex Secretariat and

Member countries
 Coordination of Codex activities within
their own countries
 Reception and circulation of Codex final
texts and working documents of Codex
sessions
 Sending of comments on Codex
documents or proposals to the Codex
Alimentarius Commission, subsidiary
bodies and/or Codex Secretariat
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
 Codex Contact Point (CCP)

 Close cooperation with national Codex

committee
 Liaison with food industry, consumers,
traders and other concerned parties
 Exchange of information and coordination
of activities with other Codex Members
 Maintenance of a library of Codex texts

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
 National Codex Committee (NCC)
 Acts as a consultative group to the government
 Formulates the country response to the proposals
of CAC
 Nominates delegates to represent the country at
Codex meetings
 Advises the government on the best possible
decisions as regards Codex standards and their
implementation
 Appoints such technical sub-committees as may
be necessary for the country's effective
participation in Codex
 Undertakes such other duties as may be advised
by the government
The Codex Alimentarius
Commission
 Regional Codex Committees

 Definition of problems and needs in the

region
 Development of regional standards
 Coordination of activities in the region
 Representation of specific interests of the
region to the Commission
 Promotion of acceptance of Codex
standards by the member countries

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
 What is the role of a regional
committee?
 Coordinating Committee for Africa
 Coordinating Committee for Asia
 Coordinating Committee for Europe
 Coordinating Committee for Latin America
and the Caribbean
 Coordinating Committee for the Near East
 Coordinating Committee for North
America and the South West Pacific

The Codex Alimentarius

Commission
The Uruguay Round

 Multilateral trade
negotiations that took
place 1986-1994
 For the first time
included liberalisation
of agricultural products
 Resulted in the
establishment of the
WTO

The World Trade Organization

 WTO Agreements

 The 13 WTO Agreements are binding to all

members of WTO
 The agreements governing regulation of
safety and quality of food in international
trade are:
 Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and
Phytosanitary Measures (SPS)
 Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade
(TBT)

The World Trade Organization

 The SPS Agreement

 Recognises the rights of Members to establish

appropriate measures to protect:
 Human life and health
 Animal life and health
 Plant life and health

On the condition that SPS Measures are:

 Non-discriminatory and not unnecessarily trade

restrictive
 Based on sound science and internationally-
agreed risk analysis procedures

The World Trade Organization

 The SPS Agreement

Emphasises the Specifically recognises:

 Codex Alimentarius -
following: Food safety
 Harmonisation  OIE-World organisation for
 Science base - Animal health (Paris)
 International plant
 Least trade protection convention
restrictiveness (IPPC) - Plant health
(Rome)
 Recognition of
equivalence Stricter measures are
 Transparency allowed if justified by a
risk assessment
 What are the SPS ‘tools’?

 SPS contains transparency provisions

 Notification authorities
 Enquiry points
 SPS committee meets twice yearly
 International forum for discussion
 An effective dispute settlement
mechanism exists within WTO
 There are other relevant ‘tools’...
 Other relevant ‘tools’

 Membership and participation in international

standardization bodies
 Codex Alimentarius food safety standards
 IPPC standards for phytosanitary standards
 OIE for zoosanitary standards
 Opportunities for capacity building in developing
countries in the area of food safety
 To promote effective participation of developing countries in the
elaboration of international standards
 To facilitate the development of a ‘whole chain’ approach to
ensuring food safety
 What are the SPS rules?

 According to the WTO SPS Agreement,

food safety measures should:
 Be based on science
 Not be unnecessarily trade-restrictive
 Not discriminate arbitrarily between
Members
 Be based on Codex standards
 The TBT Agreement

 Covers all technical regulations, voluntary

standards and conformity assessment
procedures except when these are covered
by the SPS
 Legitimate objectives include:
 National security
 Prevention of deceptive practices
 Human health
 Plant and animal health
 Environment
 Others
 The TBT Agreement

 Requires use of international standards

(including Codex Alimentarius standards
on food quality, labelling, etc.)
 Except when such standards would be an
ineffective or inappropriate means for the
fulfilment of the legitimate objectives
pursued