Oct 15, 2024 08:40 PM IST
The path ahead requires more than just regulation — it calls for active collaboration between the regulator, the food industry, and the public. We must also harness the potential of India’s growing private food safety ecosystem, which has evolved significantly in recent years.
As the chief executive officer of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) from 2016 to 2020, I witnessed the transformation of India’s food safety landscape. What began as a relatively unknown public body has evolved into a proactive and visible public health regulator.
Yet, despite the recent regulatory progress, food safety continues to grab headlines for all the wrong reasons — adulteration, contamination, and misleading labelling are frequent issues. These challenges are often more complex than they appear, involving multiple layers that cannot be resolved with quick fixes or surface-level actions. Rather than knee-jerk reactions or temporary solutions, these problems demand a deeper understanding of the underlying causes.
The role of FSSAI is clear: Ensure food products meet safety standards and are produced under hygienic practices. However, food safety risks can emerge from multiple sources — hidden contaminants such as pesticides/heavy metals, bacterial contamination, unsafe handling practices, or, for that matter, not sourcing the right ingredients. The problem gets worse because a big part of India’s food sector comprises small, informal businesses. While regulations provide a framework, they cannot address every potential issue. This is why we need to rethink how we approach food safety. India’s safety trajectory can be visualised in three distinct phases:
2011-2018: This phase laid the foundation for the food safety framework. The passage of the Food Safety and Standards Act in 2006 set the stage for a unified approach, replacing outdated laws. This was the era of establishing standards, introducing food safety management systems (FSMS), training food handlers, and launching hygiene rating systems and mobile food labs.
2019-2024: Marked by a focus on compliance and testing, this phase saw the establishment of high-quality food testing laboratories. What made this period unique was the private sector’s significant role in supporting food safety audits, training, and testing, making India’s commitment to food safety unmatched globally. IT systems were revamped to not only support licensing and registration but also enforce compliance throughout the food chain, ensuring stricter adherence to standards. Processes were established to enable small food businesses in improving hygiene standards through training and certification.
2025-2030: The next step must be about embedding food safety into the fabric of our everyday lives, with a particular focus on small businesses in the informal sector. Moving beyond compliance, it’s time to build a culture of food safety. Overemphasis on compliance can be burdensome for businesses and may unintentionally foster corrupt practices. To truly ensure safe food, we need unwavering consistency and discipline at every stage — from production to consumption.
Unfortunately, food safety is often narrowly equated with the number of government food testing labs. This view is flawed. Food safety encompasses much more. It involves proper sourcing, handling, hygiene practices, the skills of food handlers, and more. While some states may have gaps, the combined capacity of government and private food testing labs is more than adequate to maintain standards.
My experience with public food testing labs showed running these facilities effectively within the public sector can be challenging. Recognising this, FSSAI explored public-private partnership (PPP) models to manage food testing facilities. We need to leverage these combined resources.
At FSSAI, the future of food safety must focus on strategic surveillance, third-party monitoring, and enhancing risk communication. The public needs to be educated about food safety risks, and businesses must be held accountable not just for compliance, but for fostering a safety-first mindset.
The path ahead requires more than just regulation — it calls for active collaboration between the regulator, the food industry, and the public. We must also harness the potential of India’s growing private food safety ecosystem, which has evolved significantly in recent years. Working together, we can foster a culture where food safety becomes a shared responsibility. This is not about merely ticking off compliance checklists; it’s about integrating food safety into our everyday habits and practices, making it a core part of how we produce, handle, and consume food. Working together, we can ensure the food on our plates is safe — not just today but for future generations. Safe food is not a regulatory box to check but a mindset that must be ingrained in our society.
Pawan Agarwal is CEO, Food Future Foundation, and was the CEO of FSSAI from 2016 to 2020.The views expressed are personal
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