Question : QUALITY CONTROL OF CONSUMABLE ITEMS

(a) whether packaged milk, edible oil, meat and other consumable items being sold in the country are in conformity with the accepted international standard;

(b) if so, the details thereof and the facilities available in the country to examine such items, State/UT-wise;

(c) whether the Government has received any representations/proposals with regard to formulation of norms for ensuring quality control of such consumable items under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006;

(d) if so, the details thereof and the action taken by the Government theron; and

(e) the steps proposed to be taken by the Government to strengthen the facilities for examination of consumable items in the country?

THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR HEALTH & FAMILY WELFARE(SHRI DINESH TRIVEDI)

(a) At present, quality and safety of the food items including packaged food is regulated by the standards framed under the Prevention of Food Adulteration (PFA) Act, 1954 and the PFA Rules, 1955. Many of these standards are in conformity with the international standards (Codex).

(b) There are 72 laboratories in the States/UTs for testing food samples and 4 Central Food Laboratories which function as appellate laboratories for the purpose.Producers of these food items also have their own laboratories for ensuring quality.

(c) & (d) The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India(FSSAI) has set up Scientific Panels and Scientific Committees under the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (FSS Act) with the mandate of reviewing existing standards and setting new standards.This is a continuous and ongoing process also involving inter alia the feed back received from the various stake holders.

(e) The FSS Act already contains provisions for examination of food items by quality laboratories whereby it would notify food laboratories and research institutions accredited by National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories or any other accreditation agency for the purposes of carrying out analysis of samples by the Food Analysts under this Act.