Are we eating safe and healthy food?

The State Food Safety Index developed by the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), the apex food regulatory body in India, measures performance of States on five parameters -Human Resources and Institutional Data, Compliance, Food Testing - Infrastructure and Surveillance, Training and Capacity Building and Consumer Empowerment. In the Third Food Safety Index-2021, Assam ranked at poor 17 among 20 large states which calls for critical policy intervention by the State Government to ensure safer food ecosystem in the state. Assam's score in respect of "compliance" parameter, which carries 30% weightage and described to be the "most important parameter" by the FSSAI in its report, is the lowest among all states and union territories. This parameter measures overall coverage of food businesses in licensing and registration commensurate with size and population, special drives and camps organized, yearly increase, promptness, and effectiveness in issue of state licenses/ registrations and monitoring of expired licenses, inspections carried out for high-risk food businesses, mode of inspections used, and the number of samples lifted for testing besides promptness in attending to the consumer grievances. In respect of Food Testing- Infrastructure and Surveillance which carries 20% weightage, the state's score is quite high at 17, higher than even Gujarat which ranks at the top among all large states in overall ranking. This is a strength which the state government can capitalize to improve scores in respect of other four parameters. This parameter measures availability of adequate testing infrastructure with trained manpower for testing food samples and the states or union territories with NABL accredited labs and adequate manpower in the labs score more in this parameter. The availability and effective utilization of Mobile Food Testing Labs and registration and utilization of Indian Food Laboratories Network are also examined under this parameter, states the FSSAI report. The FSSAI launched the "Eat Right India" movement in 2019 to expand its focus from preventing food adulteration to ensuring safe and wholesome food for all. The campaign is focused on three pillars of food safety, healthy diets, and sustainable food systems. A FSSAI publication Do You Eat Right is a helpful guide to make right food choices and its wider dissemination is critical to raising awareness among all stakeholders. The book lists the challenges which FSSAI seeks to address through the movement -Eat Right India. One of these, it explains is that at every stage along the food value chain- primary producers, processors, buyers, packagers, distributors, regulators and consumers play a role in shaping its safety and quality, its environmental footprint and its ability to feed citizens healthily and sustainably and this chain needs to function properly for right food to reach the end users. It also highlights that the food-borne illnesses in India remain a threat to the entire population and their burden in fact is comparable to malaria, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis and the country has persistently high prevalence of under nutrition with rising incidence of over-nutrition and non-communicable diseases like diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. For food safety, FSSAI harps on the need for ensuring personal and surrounding hygiene, maintaining hygienic and sanitary practices through the food supply chain, combating adulteration, reducing toxins and contaminants in food and controlling food hazards in processing and manufacturing processes. It stresses promoting diet diversity and balanced diets, eliminating toxic industrial trans fats from food, reducing consumption of salt, sugar and saturated fats and promoting large-scale fortification of staples to address micronutrient deficiencies and promote healthy diet. The third pillar of the campaign focuses on promoting local and seasonal foods, preventing food loss and food waste, conservation of water in food value chains, reducing use of chemicals in food production and encouraging use of safe and sustainable packaging. Assam and other north-eastern states can lead the country in setting benchmark in organic and healthy food productions as traditional food production among indigenous communities is organic in nature default. However, strengthening surveillance through regular inspection and laboratory testing of food produce has become urgent necessity in view of allegations of excessive use of chemicals and pesticides in certain areas of the state, more particularly in vegetable and fruit production in char areas. The Mission Organic Value Chain Development in North East Region launched in 2015 started with an average annual allocation of Rs 134 crore during the last five years has so far covered about 75,000 hectares in the region. The annual allocation has been increased to Rs 200 crore for the next three years to cover an additional one lakh hectares area. Farmers are provided financial assistance Rs 32500 for each hectare for three years under the scheme for organic inputs such as seeds, bio-fertilisers, bio-pesticides, organic manure, compost/ vermi-compost, etc. Tapping these benefits by states in the region to promote organic farming will go a long way in safe and sustainable food production.