Risk Management Approaches in GCC Countries Bobby Krishna Food - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Risk Management Approaches in GCC Countries Bobby Krishna Food Safety Specialist Food Control Deparment Dubai Muicipality

Smoking vs Food Safety (US) Hospitalisation 128000 Death 3000 Illness 48 Mil

Dubai: Found an insect in your greens? Do not fret – this is a normal occurrence and municipal officials have said there is no need to panic. Food experts however, have recently been looking into insects as an alternative food source and the idea of consuming houseflies, caterpillars, termites and ants is being contemplated by a number of governments. “The prospect of farms processing insects for feed might soon become a global reality due to a growing demand for sustainable feed sources,” said the report, but “consumer disgust remains one of the largest barriers to the adoption of insects as viable sources of protein in many Western countries”.

Effective control measures?

GCC countries- Gulf Cooperation Council • 6 countries have common regulations for trade • Regulations are consistent with codex standards • Enforcement varies

Food Regulations GCC Food Standards Federal standards ( eg: UAE has the Ministry of Environment and Water and Emirates Standardisation Authority Local Standards in Provinces (Emirates in UAE)

Dubai Fact Sheet Food Imports • Dubai Imports more than 10 Million Tons of Food Each Year • Food Imported from more than 160 countries Visitors • More than 11 million visitors in 2014 • Steady increase in the number Food Establishments • 13000 food establishments • 6000 food service establishments including restaurants, cafés

Epi Curve 50 45 40 35 30 25 Cases 20 15 10 5 0 22-Jun 23-Jun 24-Jun 25-Jun

Trace-back All of the information related to the food item is then linked to its unique bar code Bar code system allows us to retrieve all the information related to the item by just entering the bar code in the system.

Each food group is divided into Categories

Recall of the entire product…

On 18 th December at 7 am, we received a call from Hospital H1 saying that • 5 Chinese nationals were ill with abdominal cramps and severe diarrhea • they were admitted in the hospital.

-A group of 25 tourists from China - Did not speak English - Travel agent could speak English and Chinese

Hospital – H1 Hotel B Lunch on 17 Dec ( Abu Hotel A Dhabi) Break Fast on 17 Dec Restaurant 2 Dinner on 16 Dec Restaurant 1 Lunch on 16 Dec Emirates Flight from China

Afghani stan Hotel A Dinner 16 Dec Hotel A Breakfast 17 Dec Hospital- H1 17 Dec

Evening- 19 Dec

19 Dec

3 more cases Hospital – H2 on 17 Cafeteria 1 Dec Lunch on 17 Dec Hotel A Break Fast on 17 Dec Belarus

Belarus Afghanistan 17 Dec Hotel B Hotel A Lunch on 17 Dec Restaurant 2 Dinner on 16 Dec Restaurant 1 Lunch on 16 Dec China

Confirmed in 3 cases

Did the outbreak investigation end here?

We could have reached the farm….

Lack of laboratory support to fingerprint organisms

Surveillance based decisions

Challenges • Risk Assessment vs Risk Management • Lack of Food-borne disease surveillance system – fingerprinting, whole genome sequencing • Food laws are not always based on current science • Laws not consistent; varying levels of application

Challenges- People • Limitations in scientific and technical expertise in the region • largely-foreign workforce both in the food industry and the regulatory bodies • Cultural barrier • Language barrier

Food Regulations - Dubai Focus on implementation of Food Code

Know what the requirement stands for - Understand its purpose

PIC program • The most important initiative during 2011 was developing the PIC program • Almost 20000 PICs have completed training and have been certified in food safety

Risk-Based Approach • Food safety outcomes are a combination of the establishment’s ( PIC) ability to control the risk and the inherent risk of the product and the process.

Food safety Publications