Government will consider if it should make a certain regional standard for poultry products compulsory, says Trade Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon.
She signalled intent to deal with the matter in reply to an Opposition question in the Senate yesterday. She said food fraud and food safety were “very, very serious issues.”
The Opposition’s query to her followed last week’s expose at a Joint Select Committee (JSC) meeting where various highly placed officials in Government and the food sector revealed food fraud, including that five-year-old chicken parts are being sold to T&T consumers and customers are also being duped in sale of soft drinks being peddled as flavoured “water.”
Gopee-Scoon said the matter was serious as chicken, for instance, was consumed by the majority of the population and was a large local industry. She said the matters concerned several ministries,
“We have not adopted any food standards for poultry at all,” she said, noting that was an agenda item on Council for Trade and Economic Development meetings.
She said a voluntary standard was approved by Caricom in conjunction with the Caribbean Poultry Association but it was never implemented by the past PP government. The minister said her Government would wish to consider if the administration would make that a compulsory standard.
Gopee-Scoon said she could not say for certain if there were indeed five-year-old chicken parts being imported but the Health Ministry’s Food and Drug Division relied on a certification of health from the US Department of Agriculture which stated the origin of a product. She said she did not think it also carried the date of issue.
She said action was being taken at the Bureau of Standards to look at food standards and monitor quality problems in the industry. Other ministries would be involved in a cross-functional approach to monitor the issues including agriculture, trade, health and rural development, she added.
Stressing the seriousness, she said government would continue until the actual standards were implemented. “This is very, very urgent issue, ” she repeated.
Gopee- Scoon also confirmed the Food and Drug Division’s lab had not been functional for the past two-and-half years and it had affected examination of goods, drugs and cosmetics, testing of which was done by Cariri. She said the lab issue was being given urgent attention.
On other Opposition queries regarding the unemployment scenario and a possible unemployment insurance scheme, Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste- Primus said Government would like to explore that with stakeholders since it was raised also at recent tripartite consultation and labour workshop.
She said aspects which would have to be discussed included benefit levels, time frames and the effect on consumption and employment.
She said Government had asked the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to give information on areas where the scheme was used.
She said the matter would be explored in the very near future. She said it could not be fast-tracked and could not confirm if Government would do any White Paper on it. She reiterated Government was “moving with dispatch and the process has started.”