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Food Focus May 2007

In Focus

An occasional round-up of NZFSA news, meetings and events

It’s Showtime

NZFSA has embarked on a busy schedule of consumer and trade shows around the country this year.

In March, communications advisors Fran Lovell and Niamh Murphy met with visitors at the three-day Christchurch Food Show. They provided consumers with a range of food safety brochures, leaflets and fact sheets and offered advice and information to those who already had or were looking to set up their own food businesses.

Hundreds of people visited the NZFSA stand, which will also be at Food Show events being held in Wellington from 25–27 May at the Westpac Stadium and at the ASB Showgrounds in Auckland’s Green Lane from 2–5 August. Look out too for NZFSA’s stand in the Grand Pavillion at this year’s Mystery Creek Fieldays in Hamilton from 13–16 June.

Successful Shellfish Conference

More than 200 delegates from 27 countries gathered in Blenheim in March for the International Conference on Molluscan Shellfish Safety.

Phil Busby, NZFSA’s Senior Programme Manager (Seafood), said: “We had an impressive group of speakers and presentations, and a cross-section of scientists, regulators and industry experts in attendance. The five-day conference was an excellent opportunity for us to discuss issues the shellfish industry is facing.”

Keynote speaker Lahsen Ababouch, Chief of Seafood and Trade at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, highlighted the need for an international regulatory framework to ensure consistent standards were applied.

Nororvirus testing was also discussed via teleconference with USA scientists who have made impressive progress in their research.

A roundtable discussion of marine biotoxins was also held. “A summary of the European Food Safety Authority’s position on the European Commission’s review of biotoxin regulatory levels was very useful,” Phil said, “and we expect to have some of these issues resolved by the end of the year.”

A highlight of the conference was a boat trip around the Marlborough Sounds, which gave delegates the opportunity to see how shellfish are harvested in New Zealand.

Imported food review

The way food is imported into New Zealand is set to change following a review of food imports.

Government has approved the development of a new Food Bill which will include requirements relating to imports.

The new importing system will, as much as possible, be aligned to the domestic food regulatory regime and importers will use some of the same tools proposed in the new Food Bill for local food operators, such as Food Control Plans.

The Bill requires importers to comply with general obligations and specific requirements applying to higher risk foods as set out in legislation, register with NZFSA, keep records and, on request, report this information to NZFSA.

Once the bill has been passed (hopefully this year), more operational detail will be developed about how the system will work.

Consumer resource catalogue

NZFSA Communications Group has produced a resource catalogue that showcases the range of consumer and educational resources available for promoting food safety messages.

From corporate publications, consumer advice booklets and food safety information for Pacific peoples, to Foodsafe Partnership posters, magnets, fridge thermometers and balloons, all are free of charge.

For a copy of the catalogue and the opportunity to be included on the mailing list for our regular magazines such as Food Focus, Food Connect, 4degreesC and Domestic Food Forecast, call our freephone: 0800 693 712.

Quads meeting a success

Torrential rain failed to dampen the spirits of delegates at the 16^th annual Quads meeting, held in Paihia in the Bay of Islands in March.

The Food Safety Quadrilateral meetings involve discussions with representatives from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States.

NZFSA Executive Director Andrew McKenzie says the event was a success, although the inclement weather during their stay was a bit of a distraction.

“The heavy rainfall and flooding in the area impressed our Australian colleagues who are suffering a horrendous drought. Fortunately it did not affect our meetings too much.

“These meetings are an excellent opportunity for us to share information with our counterparts and provide a forum to discuss emerging issues and international best practice standards for food safety, as well as learn of other challenges our colleagues are facing.”

The agenda included a wide range of issues – from food control interventions to labelling and dairy product safety, as well as equivalence of food safety programmes in trade.

Dr McKenzie adds: “Many of the issues we discussed are ongoing, but I was pleased by the number of concrete action points that were agreed to.”

Gelatine restriction removed

The import restriction on gelatine derived from bones from countries with a higher Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) risk status has been removed. As a result, importers will no longer need to provide certification to verify the country of origin and source of gelatine of bovine origin used as an ingredient in a wide range of foods including confectionery, yoghurts and pâté.

BSE protection measures have applied to beef and beef products imported into New Zealand for human consumption since the discovery that BSE-infected meat was the likely cause of a number of cases of variant Creutzfelt Jacob disease, a serious and fatal neurological condition of humans.

However, an NZFSA-commissioned review into New Zealand’s BSE measures concluded that scientific evidence now shows the chemical processes used to manufacture gelatine are sufficient to inactivate any BSE infectivity that might have been present in the raw material, even under worst case conditions. This means restrictions applying to gelatine derived from bovine bones and used as a food ingredient can safely be removed.

NZFSA’s Standard Management Rule controlling the way imported products containing beef are managed for BSE has been updated to reflect that bovine gelatine can now be freely traded regardless of the source (hides and skins or bones) of the gelatine.