EVERYONE has the right to safety and clean food. It is everybody’s responsibility and priority.
This may sound simple but when food is not safe it will impede the development and productivity of our economy and healthcare system. People will get sick and their illness may lead to long-lasting disability and even death.
So why is this an issue now?
I received complaints about food mishandling and sanitation. Actually, I had a client who sued a fast food chain which served her soiled food. She was hospitalized and was not able to work for weeks. There was a proposal to settle the case to avoid court litigation. However, the fast food chain refused to settle her hospital bills; thus, the filing of a lawsuit.
This issue is not only the concern of my clients; other people also buy and consume food every day. Likewise, food safety is among the Department of Science and Technology’s (DOST) priorities during the pandemic. Accordingly, this is a shared responsibility of all starting from production, to processing, to distribution, and to consumption.
The 1987 Philippine Constitution expressly provides in Section 15, Article II that “the State shall protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health consciousness among them.” With this provision, Republic Act (RA) No. 10611 otherwise known as the “Food Safety Act of 2013”, was signed into law on Aug. 23, 2013.
The law defines “food safety” as “the assurance that the food will not cause harm to the consumer when it is prepared or eaten according to its intended use.”
The objective of the law is to “protect the public from food-borne and water-borne illnesses and unsanitary, unwholesome, misbranded or adulterated foods; enhance industry and consumer confidence in the food regulatory system; and achieve economic growth and development by promoting fair trade practices and sound regulatory foundation for domestic and international trade.”
The key agencies which have the responsibility to ensure food safety are the Department of Agriculture (DA), the Department of Health (DOH), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Local Government Units (LGUs).
Under the law, it is unlawful for a person to:
(a) produce, handle or manufacture for sale, offer for sale, distribute in commerce, or import into the Philippines any food or food product which is not in conformity with an applicable food quality or safety standard promulgated in accordance with the Act;
(b) produce, handle or manufacture for sale, offer for sale, distribute in commerce, or import into the Philippines any food or food product which has been declared as a banned food product by a rule promulgated in accordance with the Act;
(c) refuse access to pertinent records or entry of inspection officers of the Food Safety Regulatory Agencies (FSRA);
(d) fail to comply with an order relating to notifications to recall unsafe products;
(e) adulterate, misbrand, mislabel, falsely advertise any food product which misleads the consumers and carry out any other acts contrary to good manufacturing practices;
(f) operate a food business without the appropriate authorization;
(g) connive with food business operators or food inspectors, which will result in food safety risks to the consumers; and
(h) violate the implementing rules and regulations of the Act
The World Health Organization (WHO) expressed its concern that “food safety is everyone’s business and responsibility. Food safety is not just up to the government or food producers. Let us all work together to make sure that our food is, and remains, safe.”
As primary stakeholders, let us adopt good hygiene practices to reduce food safety risks./PN
