How easy is it to ensurethat foods and ingredients imported from outside the EU are safe, ofsufficient quality and legal? How can UK food companies ensure completetraceability of imported food products?
These questions will be tackled at a seminar next week run by UK organisation Food Industry Training-Reading (FIT-R) together with UK based Reading Scientific Services and the School of Food Biosciences at the University of Reading. The seminar, to be held on 18 July in London, will focus on the importation of foods and ingredients.
The UK Food Standards Agency recently asked all port health authorities andlocal authorities to check for illegal imports as part of their routineinspections. In addition, a joint government task force has been initiated,headed by Agriculture Minister Joyce Quin, to investigate the particularproblem of illegally imported meat. The government has also introducedseveral regulations in the last few months dealing with specific issues.
Recent concerns over animal products and honey from China together withillegally irradiated spices, prawns, shrimps and food supplements on salein the UK has generated considerable concern.
The seminar, entitled ImportingFoods and Ingredients: Safety, Quality and Legal Considerations aims to tackle questions posed by the food industry relating to this issue.