The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has asked States and UTs to step up surveillance surveys on milk and milk products and sweets during the upcoming festival season. The food safety authority is already in the process of undertaking its annual pan-India milk survey across 766 districts.
The 42nd Central Advisory Committee (CAC) meeting was held on Saturday. In the meeting, FSSAI CEO G Kamala Vardhana Rao urged States and UT’s to raise awareness about food safety in the ecosystem. He also directed them to step up surveillance efforts in milk and milk products and sweets segment keeping in mind higher demand during festival season.
During the meeting, he also directed the Commissioners of Food Safety of States and UTs to organise trainings for food handlers in the canteens of student hostels and universities to ensure safe and hygienic food for students, officials added.
More than 50 officials, including Commissioners of Food Safety (CFS), representatives from States and UTs, senior officials from FSSAI and nodal ministries and members representing the food industry, consumers, agriculture, laboratories and research bodies participated in the meeting.
Street food
Meanwhile, Rao also asked States to promote the modern food streets initiative.
Under this initiative , FSSAI is looking to modernise 100 existing street food hubs. The State of Madhya Pradesh is already taking the lead in implementing this initiative. Officials said that the State is close to modernising some of its street food hubs.
Under the Eat Right India initiative, FSSAI has been focusing on implementing the “Clean Street Food Hubs” plan to strengthen food safety and hygiene in street food vending in the country and has already certified 110 such hubs.
In the next leg, FSSAI is focusing on modernising street food hubs. The focus of this initiative will be to enable street vendors to serve healthy and hygienic recipes in a well-defined and organised geographical area with proper infrastructure and other supporting facilities. FSSAi is providing technical support and has set up benchmarks of modern food street hubs.