Importance of food safety
The importance of food safety is known to all. During the present times when human greed has exceeded all limits people associated with food trade are using all measures to derive maximum profits from their businesses even if it means compromising with the health of the people.
The past few months have been quite harrowing for the people in Kashmir valley when food safety officials unearthed a major scam involving sale of rotten food products, stale meat and even meat products that proved unhygienic and forbidden.
The administration too devised strategies aimed at curbing the supply of adulterated food items and ensuring safe, hygienic and quality food for consumers across all districts of the Union Territory.
Though various measures are being undertaken but a continuous monitoring and stringent enforcement of the legal framework to protect public health needs to be the guiding principle.
Notably, food safety is a non-negotiable aspect of public welfare, as food is consumed daily and has a direct and lasting impact on the health of citizens. Therefore, a robust, technology-driven and proactive enforcement mechanism to eliminate adulteration and ensure compliance with prescribed quality standards needs to be put in place.
The Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA) which highlights significant progress in surveillance, inspections and legal action against violators needs to be implemented strictly across the regions so that a deterrent is set for those who believe in violating norms time and again.
Last year the department of food safety was tasked to at least target of 7,080 samples annually however, the department has already lifted 10,620 surveillance samples, achieving over 150% of the target, reflecting a strong commitment toward consumer safety.
Besides, the Food Safety Officers conducted 1,423 Risk-Based Inspections and 13,944 Routine Inspections across the Union Territory. To ensure infrastructure and hygiene compliance, 943 Improvement Notices were issued to Food Business Operators (FBOs) under Section 32 of the FSS Act, surpassing the target of 625 notices.
What should also be ensured is that strict legal action should be being taken against violators.
Though, under the civil adjudication process (Section 30), a total of 718 prosecutions have been launched, of which 671 cases have already been decided, resulting in penalties amounting to Rs 84.33 lakhs. Additionally, 21 criminal cases pertaining to unsafe food have been filed, with convictions secured in 10 cases involving fines and imprisonment.
These convictions will surely go a long way in creating a huge warning for those who have taken health and safety norms as for-granted and take law and the action following it lightly.
The administration too should not lower its guard and officials at the ground level need to maintain strict vigil on the market, especially with regard to high-risk commodities that are being fed to the masses.
Importantly, a sustained vigilance, strong enforcement and public participation are essential to ensure a safe and healthy food ecosystem in Jammu and Kashmir.
