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Food Safety Risk Management in New Zealand- Application of a Risk Management Framework

Lay Summary

The New Zealand Food Safety Authority is responsible for managing risks to the safety of all food produced in New Zealand (whether it is sold here or exported) and all food that is imported to New Zealand for sale.

Food safety risks or hazards can arise from domestic or international sources and can be biological, chemical or physical. Biological risks include the presence of bacteria such as campylobacter, chemical risks include the presence of residues from pesticides, and there can be physical risks if a food contains foreign matter or bodies.

When faced with potential risks in the food supply, NZFSA looks at the issue from a public health perspective and seeks to answer these questions:

• What can go wrong?

• How likely is it to go wrong?

• How serious would it be if it went wrong?

• What can be done to reduce the likelihood and/or seriousness of it going wrong?

The process NZFSA uses to ask and answer these questions, and take necessary action, is called the NZFSA Risk Management Framework (RMF). The RMF has four steps. NZFSA applies the same framework to all food safety issues. This is important because NZFSA must be consistent and transparent in its management of food safety matters.

Most food safety issues are identified by NZFSA in the course of its various activities; some are raised by consumers, and others come to light through requests from industry for NZFSA to evaluate new food production or processing technology. The global scientific community is also helpful in identifying new food safety risks, and developments in food standards to address those risks, as are New Zealand’s trading partners.

Answering the first three questions includes scientific evaluation and may progress to a formal risk assessment. These activities are part of the first step of the RMF process – Step 1 (referred to as ‘preliminary risk management activities’). The scientific evaluation (including risk assessment) of food safety issues involves a range of scientific resources. These include the NZFSA Science Group, scientists working for NZFSA under contract, industry, regulators in other countries, and international organisations that set standards for food in trade. If a risk assessment is undertaken, both the number of people who could potentially be affected and the severity of the possible health effects will be estimated.

Once the scientific evaluation has been completed, the NZFSA risk manager looks at options for managing identified risks. This is Step 2 of the RMF process and is referred to as “Identification and selection of risk management options”, and includes answering the last of the four questions noted above. There is a wide range of control measures available, ranging from those that are mandatory e.g. legal requirements that are set out in regulations or standards, to voluntary measures such as industry activities and education packages for consumers. The options are carefully evaluated, with the most important criteria being whether the control measures that are available can achieve the desired outcome. NZFSA also weighs up the various economic costs and benefits of implementing the different control measure options. This includes assessing their practicality and effectiveness e.g. whether they can be monitored and enforced.

After the preferred risk management option has been selected, it is put into effect. This is Step 3 of the RMF process and is known as “Implementation of control measures”. The chosen control measure (or group of measures) will be applied at an appropriate point in the ‘production to consumption’ food chain. It is important to note that the food industry has the primary responsibility for ensuring safe food and they will directly implement most of the food control measures established via the RMF process. NZFSA verifies that mandatory standards are properly implemented by industry.

The final stage in the RMF, Step 4 is “monitoring and review”, which is where the effectiveness of control measures are evaluated, and reviewed if necessary. NZFSA monitors food safety through an extensive set of databases and also maintains a close relationship with the Ministry of Health in monitoring human foodborne illness. If control measures identified and implemented according to the RMF process are found to be ineffective, a review would involve starting with Step 1 of the RMF and identifying and implementing new measures.

An important part of the RMF that occurs throughout the Steps, is risk communication. In practice, risk communication is about consultation and sharing information with all the relevant parties (consumers, industry, trading partners, food safety regulators in other parts of the world, international organisations involved in food safety matters), taking into account their knowledge, values, and perceptions. When a significant food safety issue arises, part of Step 1 of the RMF will be the development of a communication plan and this will be progressively implemented as the RMF process unfolds.

MAF and the MoH have agreed the strategic approach to be taken towards the implementation of a "seamless" food safety system for New Zealand and a document outlining this "Food Administration in New Zealand : Implementation of a Generic Approach to Risk-based Management Plans", has been adopted by the Steering Committee.