The changes include the removal of the requirement for the authorisations of three regulated product regimes (feed additives, smoke flavourings and food or feed containing genetically modified organisms) to renewed every ten years, and the move to allow authorisations to come into effect following ministerial decision and then be published in an official public register rather than by legislation.
Removing the requirement to reassess products that have many years of safe use, regardless of whether evidence on safety changes, is in line with processes used for other regulated product regimes and will allow the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS) to focus resources on detailed assessments of products which potentially pose the most risk.
The FSA and FSS will still be able monitor new evidence and take action if necessary and conduct a thorough safety or risk assessment which is included in recommendations to ministers who then decide whether the product can be sold.
The changes were made as part of efforts by the FSA and FSS to create a streamlined market authorisations service for regulated products that achieves a more efficient service, without reducing food safety or standards in any way.
Businesses must report to FSA and FSS if they believe their products could harm consumers, while for certain products, they need to also conduct and report post-market monitoring and environmental monitoring.
This aligns with other UK regulators’ processes and will shorten the administrative period before new, safe products can be sold, while the publication of authorisations in online registers will make information more accessible.
In related news, four men and a business have been convicted for diverting meat unfit for human consumption back into the supply chain.
The convictions were the result of a lengthy investigation by Southwark Council and the FSA’s National Food Crime Unit (NFCU) into the sale of animal by-products into the human food chain.
