Odisha stands 4th in National Food Safety Index: Set to sensitize street eatery operators on safe food

Bhubaneswar, Dec 1: Odisha has stood fourth in National Food Safety Index this year, expediting fabulous food safety measures. The state has kept up its upward movement in the National Food Safety Index from 26th position in the year 2018-19 to 13th position in 2019-20 and further to 4th position in 2020-21. The upward trend of the food safety measures across the state staggering a new record, that is from the 13th position to the 4th was revealed at the state level food safety advisory committee meeting held virtually on Wednesday under the Chairmanship of Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra at Lokseba Bhawan wherein Additional Chief Secretary Raj Kumar Sharma outlined the issues for discussion. Reviewing the progress made so far, Mahapatra directed the department to orient and train the street food vendors on the preparation of safe food. He said the food vendors must be made aware of the dangerous effect of adulterated food on human health.  He said, “Training and orientation to the food vendors would be a definite deterrent against the unsafe food”. He also directed to strengthen enforcement activities against adulterated food. “Selling adulterated food is a criminal offence like selling adulterated medicine and it must be dealt with mercilessly”, Mahapatra added. Apart from it, he directed the concerned officials to hold district-level food safety meetings regularly for keeping vigil over the sale of safe food by street vendors and food business operators. He also directed to collect intelligence on the quality of food being sold in towns from public and police sources.           Commissioner Yamini Sadangi said that the state food testing laboratory has enhanced its capacity and has been accredited by the National Accreditation and Calibration Board, and has also been assessed and accredited as per the standards of ISO-2017. The Mobile food testing laboratory has been rolled out for food testing in different fairs, exhibitions, public celebrations and community festivals. Sadangi said,“Under the programme of blissful hygienic offering to God ( BHOG), Tarinima Temple in Rourkela has received the certification of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India ( FASSI)”. KIIT hospital was declared as the first ‘Eat-Right’ campus in Odisha. Similarly, the convent school street connecting Ram Mandir Road in Unit-III was declared as ‘Clean Street Food Hub’, she added. The issues relating to special accommodation for food safety officers at the district level were figured in the meeting. It was decided to explore all possibilities for providing them the office space in district headquarters hospitals. The proposals including intensifying the surveillance, increasing the number of food testing laboratories, involving private labs in food testing and food fortification measures were deliberated in the meeting. Additional Chief Secretary Sharma directed the Food Safety Commissioner to assess the requirements for up-scaling the collection and testing of the food sample.            According to the current database, as many as 3049 samples were collected and tested by way of surveillance and enforcement in the year 2020-21. Out of it, 576 offenders were booked under adulteration and misbranding. Similarly, a total number of 1984 samples were tested out of which 446 were booked under adulteration or misbranding. Apart from it, a total number of 280 cases were compounded with fines by the end of October 2020-21.           On the other hand, at least 22,706 food business operators ( FBOs)  were issued licenses online and 83,285  FBOs were issued online registration certificates. Worth mentioning, the FBOs having a turnover of less than 12 lakhs per annum are issued the registration certificate whereas FBOs having an annual turnover of more than 12 lakhs are issued licenses. FoSCoS online system has been adopted for the online application of Food License and Registration.           Development Commissioner Pardeep Kumar Jena, Additional Chief Secretary Health and Family Welfare Raj Kumar Sharma, Food Safety Commissioner Yamini Sadangi, ADG, Law & Order, Radhakishan Sharma along with senior officers from the allied departments participated in the discussions.