Food-tracking mechanism made

mandatory
Jocelyn R. Uy, 2/28/15, PDI
MANILA, PhilippinesFood business
operators in the country will be
required to establish a mechanism
that would track and trace food
products from the dinner table to
the source to help boost the safety
of Filipino consumers, especially in
cases of product recalls and
contamination.
The establishment of such a
system was made mandatory with
the recent signing of the
Implementing Rules and
Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act
No. 10611 or the Food Safety Act of
2013 by the Department of Health
(DOH) and the Department of
Agriculture (DA).
In a joint press conference last
week, Acting Health Secretary
Janette Garin said that under the
IRR, food business operators will be
required to establish a traceability
system for food, food-producing
plants and animals and other
inputs in the primary and postharvest stages of the food chain.
This system will indicate at the
minimum where the item
immediately came from and where
it will immediately proceed, said
Garin, noting that such mechanism
will be based on principles and
guidelines of the Codex and other
international bodies.
She said this traceability system
would be most helpful in time of
product recalls. The pullout will be

fast because we will know where

these items were distributed and
where they came from, Garin told
reporters.
The IRR aims to protect the
consumer from food-borne and
water-borne illnesses and
unsanitary, unwholesome,
misbranded or adulterated food
and enhance industry and
consumer confidence in the food
regulatory system, she said.
The IRR also established the Food
Safety Regulation Coordination
Board, which shall be chaired by
the DOH secretary and cochaired
by the DA secretary.
Among the tasks of the board is to
assess the overlapping functions of
concerned agencies considering
consumer health, protection and
capability and effectiveness in
implementing the rules of the Food
Safety Act, said the health official.
Under the IRR, the DA has been
designated to oversee all fresh
produce or food obtained from
primary production while the DOHs
Food and Drug Administration has
been tasked to supervise all
processed food, whether
prepackaged or not.
The DOH and the DA, in
consultation with the Bureau of
Customs, shall also develop a
manual of procedures for the
inspection of and clearance
procedures for imported and
exported food shipments.

When implemented properly, the

Food Safety Act will create and
enhance food standards that would
facilitate Philippine food exports to
other countries, help create a
unique Philippine food brand and

allow its greater acceptance into

new international markets, Garin
said.