South Africa s Food Safety Regulatory System and Industry Standards. Dr. BOITSHOKO NTSHABELE DIRECTOR: FOOD SAFETY AND QUALITY ASSURANCE

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1 South Africa s Food Safety Regulatory System and Industry Standards Dr. BOITSHOKO NTSHABELE DIRECTOR: FOOD SAFETY AND QUALITY ASSURANCE

2 SAFE FOOD FOR ALL SHARED RESPONSIBILITY FOOD LEGISLATION & LAW ENFORCEMENT ADVICE FOR INDUSTRY/TRADE CONSUMER EDUCATION INFO GATHERING & RESEARCH PROVIDING HEALTH- RELATED SERVICES EDUCATED AND KNOW- LEDGEABLE PUBLIC DISCRIMINATING & SELECTIVE CONSUMERS SAFE FOOD PRACTICES IN THE HOME COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION ACTIVE CONSUMER GROUPS GMP S BY PRIMARY PRODUCERS/DISTRIB. QA & CONTROL OF PROCESSED FOOD APPROPRIATE PROCESSES AND TECHNOLOGY TRAINED MANAGERS & FOOD HANDLERS INFORMATIVE LABEL- LING & CONSUMER EDUC. GOVERNMENT CONSUMERS INDUSTRY/TRADE NATIONAL COMMITMENT TO FOOD SAFETY CAC LEADERSHIP FOR INTERNATIONAL CONSENSUS ON FOOD SAFETY ISSUES, POLICY & ACTIONS

3 SOUTH AFRICA S FOOD SAFETY LANDSCAPE DEPT AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY AND FISHERIES Ensuring Good Agricultural Practices The control of Abattoirs Developing and enforcing food quality standards Certain labelling standards Certain imports and exports Registration of GMOs Registration of agricultural remedies National SPS Enquiry Point Operates at two tiers of government, National and Provinces 3

4 SOUTH AFRICA S FOOD SAFETY LANDSCAPE DEPARMENT OF HEALTH Developing food safety and nutrition standards Food hygiene issues (excluding abattoirs) Certain aspects of food labelling Certain nutritional related aspects such as food fortification The quality of certain products Certain import activities National Codex Contact Point Operations at National, Provincial and Local (Municipal Health Services) 4

5 SOUTH AFRICA S FOOD SAFETY LANDSCAPE DEPARTMENT OF TRADEAND INDUSTRY NATIONAL REGULATOR FOR COMPULSORY SPECIFICATIONS The NRCS administers compulsory specifications (Technical Regulations) on behalf of the Minister of Trade and Industry for: Canned and frozen fishery products, including seafood Canned meat products 5

6 BASIS FOR FOOD SAFETY REGULATION SPS AGREEMENT Agreement applies to all sanitary and phytosanitary measures which may, directly or indirectly, affect international trade. Such measures shall be developed and applied in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement. 6

7 BASIS FOR FOOD SAFETY REGULATION To harmonize sanitary and phytosanitary measures on as wide a basis as possible, Members shall base their sanitary or phytosanitary measures on international standards, guidelines or recommendations, where they exist, except as otherwise provided for in this Agreement 7

8 BASIS FOR FOOD SAFETY REGULATION Provided the measures are: based on scientific risk analysis; consistently applied; and not more trade restrictive than necessary 8

9 THE THREE SISTERS 9

10 ISSUES PERTAINING TO INDUSTRY STANDARDS Raised in the WTO SPS committee by St Vincent and Grenadine regarding EurapGAP (GLOBALGAP) Key challenge Market Access Many dimensions including local market and international trade Created an adhoc group from October 2008 Produced report with Possible actions for the SPS committee regarding SPS related private standards Five possible actions adopted by the committee

11 ISSUES PERTAINING TO INDUSTRY STANDARDS The SPS Committee should develop a working definition of SPS-related private standards and limit any discussions to these. The SPS Committee should regularly inform the Codex, OIE and IPPC regarding relevant developments in its consideration of SPS-related private standards, and should invite these organizations to likewise regularly inform the SPS Committee of relevant developments in their respective bodies. The SPS Committee invites the Secretariat to inform the Committee on developments in other WTO fora which could be of relevance for its discussions on SPS-related private standards. 11

12 ISSUES PERTAINING TO INDUSTRY STANDARDS Members are encouraged to communicate with entities involved in SPS-related private standards in their territories to sensitize them to the issues raised in the SPS Committee and underline the importance of international standards established by the Codex, OIE and IPPC. The SPS Committee should explore the possibility of working with the Codex, OIE and IPPC to support the development and/or dissemination of informative materials underlining the importance of international SPS standards. 12

13 ISSUES PERTAINING TO INDUSTRY STANDARDS Market Access Extend beyond the legal frame work for international trade; environmental issues, welfare etc Represent differentiation in the market place without accrued benefits for the consumer Increase the (affordability) cost of ownership-impact food and nutrient security May contradict government regulation May misrepresent/ misleading statements

14 GLOBAL FOOD SAFETY INTIATIVE SEEN AS APPROPRIATE RESPONSE Reduce food safety risks by delivering equivalence and convergence between effective food safety management systems Manage cost in the global food system by eliminating redundancy and improving operational efficiency Develop competencies and capacity building in food safety to create consistent and effective global food systems Provide a unique international stakeholder platform for collaboration, knowledge exchange and networking

15 GLOBAL FOOD SAFETY INTIATIVE Benefits: improvements in regulatory system and increase consumer protection Innovation International market access and revenue for the country Compliance with other legislation-due diligence requirement Responsive to market requirements

16 References Department of Health A presentation on situation analysis and roles and responsibilities for food control in South Africa by Mr. Malose Daniel Matlala FAO - Food safety risk Analysis A guide to national food safety authorities

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