The government has failed to establish 'Veterinary, Public Health and Food Safety Authority' (VPH&FSA) under Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (Minfal) despite the fact that the National Codex Committee (NCC) had endorsed the establishment of the 'authority' some ten months back, sources told Business Recorder.
They said that NCC had endorsed the establishment of VPH&FSA in May 2006. However, no action has been taken so far in this regard. "The government is working at a very slow pace, while other countries including some regional states are going well ahead of Pakistan to meet the international standards," they said.
"The inaction on the part of concerned agencies will harm the country. The codex measures for food items' safety can actually help Pakistan take advantage of building national competitiveness in world food trade and ensure health safety of domestic consumers," sources added.
The NCC was establishment in November 2005. The responsibility of NCC includes appraisal of reports of the Codex Alimantarius Commission (CAC), an internationally accepted body, sources said.
Besides, the NCC is to keep liaison with CAC at various fora, and review existing food laws to develop draft of 'National Food Act' in harmony with Codex standards, sanitary and phyto-sanitary (sps) and technical barriers to trade (TBT). Chaired by Secretary Minfal, with 14 members from various ministries and attached departments, the NCC was also assigned to promote health awareness among citizens and advise Minfal on Codex issues. Sources said that Pakistan's trade had been facing tough competition from global partners and it was necessary that the government should have moved quickly to introduce new measures and implement them promptly.
The Ministry of Health has already initiated the process of amending the existing 'National Food Act', sources said. They said that the government wanted to introduce 'Pakistan Pure Food Act 2006'. The present food related regulations have inadequate coverage and they do not meet the present day needs, sources said. The proposed law will meet Pakistan's commitment to WTO and agreements on SPS measures and TBT.
According to sources, the NCC in its last meeting held in mid-2006, also recommended to Minfal to ensure the presence of provincial representatives in the NCC meetings so that the federating units could take appropriate steps for food items' safety. The NCC has also called for conducting of detailed study by Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) and Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) to work out different modalities for scientific research in food items for ensuring compliance with international standards, sources said.
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