SMEs urged to ensure food safety to compete

TO BE competitive, small and micro food enterprises must secure a license to operate, register their products and comply with other requirements under the newly signed Food Safety Act of 2013.

The food sector is a very critical part of the economy and safety is a big factor that consumers nowadays look for in a product, said Renea Cruz-Tan, knowledge management coordinator for sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) conformity and rapid response facility components of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Trade Related Technical Assistance (TRTA) Project 3.

Tan said that, to date, a lot of SMEs in the food industry have not complied with these basic requirements, making it impossible for them to cater to the growing global market.

“It is important that these enterprises are ready, capacitated and updated in order to pursue larger markets,” said Elias G. Tecson, DTI Program Management Division chief.

“The Asean integration is already here and with that a huge 600 million market to tap. We want them to be able to participate and compete,” Tan said.

Many products from Thailand have already entered the Philippine market, said DTI Cebu provincial director Nelia F. Navarro.

Navarro said the agency expects more countries to start tapping into the 100- million domestic market.

“Soon we’ll see more Indonesian products, products from Vietnam, Malaysia and more. We need to be more competitive,” she said.

Its implementing rules and regulations were signed in February this year, said Dr. Oscar Gutierrez, Jr., officer-in-charge of the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) policy and planning office.

The Food Safety Act aims to strengthen the food safety regulatory system in the country and protect consumers from food-borne illnesses.

FOOD SAFETY

Based on the Code of Sanitation, food is considered safe and wholesome if it is free of defects, infection or toxin.

It should also have proper hygiene control, sanitation and intervention, said Rolando Santiago,supervising health program officer of the Department of Health.

Food safety covers not only the raw materials, but food handling and food handlers as well, Santiago said.

For sanitation purposes, food handlers are required to secure health certificates.

Food establishments without a sanitary permit are not allowed to operate. Establishments need to secure a satisfactory rating based on the existing sanitation standards.

While food establishments may be approved as sanitary based on these standards, Gutierrez said that food safety is relative.

Some food establishments may pass the sanitation standards at 50 percent and some may pass the sanitation standards at 75 percent. Food sanitation is not absolute, he added.

E-REGISTRATION

Navarro said that during their consultations with the small and micro food enterprises, one of the concerns raised was the long process of securing these documentary requirements.

“FDA already knows about this and has now setup an online application system to make it easier for these enterprises to register their products and apply for an LTO (license to operate). Now they no longer have to go to Manila to process applications manually,” said Navarro.

Over 100 SME representatives participated in yesterday’s training on food safety, licensing and registration. They will be given a demonstration today on the online application process for the LTO and Certificate of Product Registration (CPR).

The online system cuts the processing period to one month from the previous 10 months to a year, Tan said.

She brushed aside complaints on the high fees imposed by the FDA, saying the benefits that an enterprise could enjoy with an FDA seal is boundless.

“Consumers will always trust the label and once you have that FDA assurance label with your products duly registered, they will trust your product and will buy them,” she said.

Tan also said that they would also like to emphasize traceability, which is no longer an option but a responsibility under the new Food Safety Act of 2013.

TRACEABILITY

“We also want to emphasize that traceability can be done as easy as ‘one step backward and one step forward’. Simply take note of where you sourced your raw materials and to whom did you sell your products,” said Tan.

She added that Cebu is home to a lot of good and well-established food brands and employing traceability into their process can help them maintain their brand image and at the same time remain competitive.

Through the Food Safety Act of 2013, Navarro said that there is now closer collaboration among the Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Health (DOH), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the local government units (LGUs) as well as DTI and FDA.