The quality of processed foods distributed locally and products which are manufactured for export are the focus of a renewed health sector campaign aimed at promoting better standards.
Manufacturers are expected to upgrade to the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) food management system, which has been around for decades, but has been in limited use among local producers.
Director of the Government Analyst Food and Drug Department Marilyn Collins said yesterday that HACCP will ensure greater food safety and also eliminate wastage in the system. She said her department and the health ministry have been pushing HACCP for years, but manufacturers here have been slow in implementing it. This, she said, is because a certain amount of capital expenditure is required to ensure that the facilities comply with the minimum manufacturing practices.
But Collins pointed out that larger industries, such as Banks DIH, Demerara Distillers Ltd and Sterling Products, have been on board with the HACCP system for sometime now. She noted that the seafood industries also had to implement HACCP, but for the processed food industries there are no mandatory requirements. According to Collins, the aim is to work with the small and medium industries to educate them about the system and build on a solid partnership.
The Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the Food and Drug Department, yesterday opened a two-day training workshop on HACCP. Health Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy used the forum to call for a strengthened partnership between the health sector and local manufacturers. He said some producers face the possibility of losing their manufacturing licence if they fail to comply with the standards which are set in the industry, and he added that the health sector will act with the public in mind.
According to the minister, people should be able to access quality food on the market, whether they are produced here or imported. Ramsammy said it is not in Guyana’s interest for manufacturing companies to go out of business and he urged manufacturers to work along with the Health Ministry and the Food and Drug Department to push the production sector forward. “We need to work together and form a partnership in the interest of the public,” Ramsammy said.
The Minister stressed safety, saying that the issue is not always about how clean a manufacturing site is. He added that the sector is building capacity in this area, but pointed out that the system currently lacks an adequate complement of officers to effectively monitor the manufacturing industry. He admitted that the required amount of officers is not likely and emphasised that the intention is not to “inspect out the problem.” He said the focus should be on building a stronger partnership rather than recruiting more people to spend long hours monitoring manufacturers.
He said too that the complaints from manufacturers about “overly enthusiastic” inspecting officers are well noted. Ramsammy commented that he has zero tolerance for officers that abuse their powers and he gave an assurance that the ministry would address the concerns raised in the industry. However, he charged that some manufacturers often file complaints, when officers are merely performing their duties.
Ramsammy said he is aware that the production business is profit-driven, but he called on the manufacturers to focus on quality and standards as they do with profits, adding that it is not solely about money. He said certain acceptable standards must be adhered to and added that manufacturers need to make safety a priority.
He also spoke on the issue of labelling in the manufacturing sector, saying that all products intended for sale whether locally or overseas must be labelled in English. He said the Food and Drug department will step up its vigilance in this area to ensure that products are properly labelled, including imported products. “This is an area that we will address more robustly in another few weeks,” Ramsammy stated.
He said too that people believe the health sector is looking only at processed foods. However, he added that the focus would also be on products such as cosmetics and herbal medicine. Ramsammy said unsafe products could be anywhere and he stressed that is it within the jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Department to examine all bottled products on the market intended for sale.
Among some of the companies represented at the HACCP training workshop yesterday were: Ricks and Sari, Lam’s Trading, Continental Foods, Sheik Food Products, Sunrise Manufacturing Products and Mohamed’s Manufacturing Enterprise.
