Concerns about counterfeit products and water quality spur crucial workshop

Jun 11, 2014 News

---

“The fate of good food in terms of labelling now rests with you,” said Resident Representative of the Pan American Health Organisation and World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO), Dr. William Adu-Krow, as he addressed the participants of a ‘Food nutritional labelling and water testing’ workshop yesterday.

And there is significant progress already being made to ensure that authenticity of food labelling obtains on the market, Dr. Adu-Krow noted, as he presented brief remarks at the start of the forum held at the Institute of Applied Science and Technology building, University of Guyana campus.
“I think that you are making a lot of inroads…Based on the expertise available we are confident that food inspectors and environmental health officers will be equipped to exercise and enhance regulatory oversight on food labelling for compliance to nutritional labelling and claims as stated on the labels on food products.”
With focus on labelling features such as sample content, caloric value, claims and warnings, the workshop, which was co-organised by the Government Analyst Food and Drug Department (GA-FDD) and PAHO, is designed to examine, among others, the labelling of genetically modified foods – whole grain, processed foods, processed fruits and vegetables, and processed meats.
According to Food and Drug Director, Marlan Cole, the workshop is arguably the first of its kind to be spearheaded by his department. Nevertheless, he underscored that it could not have come at a better time, since the local market is currently inundated with counterfeit products. “This situation is not restricted to food only as it includes drugs, cosmetics, and other products as well…,” said Cole, who went on to note that it was in fact a strategic move to collaborate with supporting agencies such as PAHO and the University of the West Indies’ Tropical Medicine Research Institute (TMRI) to address the existing state of affairs.
Tasked with facilitating and sharing key information to help combat counterfeiting challenges, the visiting TMRI group includes Professor Marvin Reid, Sasha Thomas and Sardia Morgan-McDonald.
Speaking at the opening of the workshop, Professor Reid said that “the expectation from our side is that there will be a bi-directional flow of information; we will learn from you because in your own right you are all your own experts and you know what the conditions are on the ground. From our side we will try to share as much as we know to assist you in making your work much easier.”
Cole emphasised that in its earnest attempt to tackle the counterfeiting challenge, the Food and Drug Department has also been working closely with members of the National Food Safety and Control Committee and Environmental Health Officers.
“We must be able to bridge that gap between the manufacturers and the consumers, and in bridging that gap, we must be able to support determinations as it relates to the content of food, drugs or cosmetics…”

According to Cole, “we must be able to say if it is low-fat, no-fat, 100 per cent free of trans-fat, free of whatever might be claimed. Any health claims an officer must be able to look at a label and make a determination and reliably inform consumers.”
He pointed out that usually products are outfitted with labels that make a number of claims for marketing and selling purposes, and it is therefore the role of entities like the GA-FDD, together with associated agencies, to ensure that these labels are authentic.
And detecting counterfeit labels may not always be a very difficult task, since according to the GA-FDD Director, “we know in many instances when a product is being counterfeited there are many mistakes with the label itself.”
As such, Cole is convinced that the workshop is one that will see crucial information being transferred from the expert TMRI consultants to the participants, who will be the ones engaged in the task of detecting counterfeit products. And according to Cole, too, “the consultants are very experienced in this area and I know the information would be used in the very best interest of our manufacturing and importing industries and our consumers will by extension be informed as well.”
This move comes at a time when consumers are already more alert about the products they seek to purchase, Cole noted, as he observed that “consumers are becoming very health conscious, they are seeking out products that are natural, that are organic, that are low in sugar and low in salt.”
Moreover, GA-FDD’s Tandica Barton in opening remarks yesterday said that the workshop is geared towards safeguarding the health and wellbeing of consumers. She pointed out that “it is with great hope that in the next few days all participants will be well informed about the important aspects of nutritional labelling.”
As such, the workshop will examine principles of nutrition; introduction to food labelling regulations, nutritional labelling and its requirements; nutrient content and health claims and the development of a food label with nutritional content.
The four-day workshop, which targets mainly Food and Drug as well as Environmental and Public Health officers, drawn from various regions, also entailed a segment on how to maintain and use portable DelAgua water-testing kits that were donated by PAHO. Aided by the testing kits, it is expected that concerted efforts will be made countrywide to test the quality of water available to the consuming public.
The testing kits are slated to be utilised mainly by environmental health workers, and at least one will be handed over to the Guyana Water Incorporated in order to facilitate bacteriological analysis of drinking water in remote areas. This process, it is believed, will address the water quality challenges that were found during a gastroenteritis outbreak in Region One last year.

---

---