Food Safety, Animal Welfare bills for parliament by October - Holder

Food Safety, Animal Welfare bills for parliament by October – Holder

Aug 08, 2016 News

By Jarryl Bryan
Parliament is expected to go into recess on August 10th. Following its resumption in October, however, two key pieces of legislation are to be laid in the house.

Guyana is a signatory to CODEX; an international commission dealing with food safety.

These are the Animal Welfare bill and the Food Safety bill 2016, which aims to prevent the spread of food borne diseases. This was confirmed by Minister of Agriculture, Noel Holder in an interview yesterday.
He revealed that cabinet recently completed its perusal. He stated that the next step would be having the bills reviewed by the Attorney General’s chambers.
Holder, who as the responsible minister will be the one tabling the bills in the October session, stated that once that is completed the bills will be brought to the house.
Commenting on the importance of the bills, he pointed to rising concern over food safety. He gave an example, noting that in case of an epidemic, the bill will allow for mechanisms to monitor and track the origins of the produce.
When Holder had first announced presenting the draft bill to cabinet, he had said that the bill would integrate the system Guyana currently had in place. This, he had said, would involve creating a Food Safety Authority.
“When enacted,” he had said. “The Food Safety Bill will seek to prevent the spread of food borne diseases through the control of the production, preparation, handling, storage and the transportation of food and provide for connected matters.”
Guyana, as a member of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, has a special responsibility to bring its oversight mechanisms up to international standards.
The Codex Alimentarius or “Food Code” was established by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Health Organization in 1963 to develop international food standards that protect consumer health and promote fair practices in food trade.
Today, the CAC is comprised of 188 member countries, one member Organization (EU), and more than 200 intergovernmental and international non-governmental organizations. The Codex standards ensure that food is safe and can be traded.
It is understood that the 188 Codex members would have negotiated science based recommendations. These would be in areas related to food safety and quality.
This includes food hygiene; maximum limits for food additives; residues of pesticides and veterinary drugs; and maximum limits and codes for the prevention of chemical and microbiological contamination.
Guyana became a member of the Codex Alimentarius Commission in 1970 and falls within the Latin America and the Caribbean Region. Guyana’s National Codex Committee was resuscitated on March 05, 2014 through the Guyana National Bureau of Standards.
The Guyana National Bureau of Standards is the Codex Contact Point for Guyana. The National Codex Committee comprises seventeen members from sectors such as, government, non-government (NGO), private sector, and academia.
Meanwhile, Holder noted that the Animal Welfare bill will deal with how animals are treated. According to the minister, some of this bill’s content is likely to overlap with the upcoming Wildlife management bill.
It will be a follow up to the Cruelty to Animals bill which was passed under the previous administration. While there is legislation catering for the treatment and handling of animals, enforcement of these Acts has always been questionable.
The Guyana Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (GSPCA) has been outspoken about the need for implementation and enforcement of legislation to ensure that owners of dangerous dogs manage them in a responsible way.

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