November 4, 2009

Chinese Officials Examine Food Safety Systems in Minnesota

Twenty-two senior Chinese food safety delegates from government, industry and academic sectors arrive in Minnesota this week to conclude a two-week program focused on how nations achieve international food safety standards for protecting public health.

The Global Initiative for Food Systems Leadership (GIFSL), a public-private-academic partnership, organized the exchange which has included meetings with international policy experts, visits to food facilities and discussions with food safety leaders from the public and private sectors as well as university experts. GIFSL receives expertise and financial support from the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Cargill, General Mills, Ecolab, the Dutch Food Safety Authority, the University of Minnesota and numerous other partners.

”Everyone in the food supply chain has some responsibility for ensuring food safety,” said international food safety expert Will Hueston, GIFSL executive director and professor of veterinary medicine and public health at the University of Minnesota. “It takes a collaborative effort to ensure safety, and that’s one of the goals of this project.”

The program in Minnesota includes:

* Wednesday, November 4– Meetings with the Minnesota departments of agriculture and health and the Board of Animal Health and a tour of a General Mills facility in Chanhassen.
* Thursday, November 5–an examination of food safety protections in the dairy supply-chain with visits to a dairy farm in Buffalo, a dairy processing plant, a grocery store, and Ecolab’s research and development facility in Eagan.
* Friday, November 6–Roundtable discussion with industry food safety leaders at Cargill headquarters.


”Food safety is the concern and responsibility of every country in the world. It is a top priority for the Chinese government. Through the program, we can share ideas, experience and even lessons for food safety administration. We hope to enhance food safety management through the whole food supply chain in China and other countries so as to bring safer and higher quality food for people with these joint efforts,”said Mr. Li Hai Qing, the head of delegation. “We highly appreciate the University of Minnesota, Cargill, General Mills, Ecolab and all other partners which are making great efforts to drive the program.”

”Safe food is fundamental to our business at Cargill,” said Mike Robach, vice president of Food Safety and Regulatory Affairs. “By partnering with GIFSL, we hope to advance a cooperative approach that strengthens global food safety while ensuring food availability.”

The Chinese delegation visit advances the food safety seminars that General Mills has conducted in the last several years with local officials in China, said Mark Fryling, director of quality and regulatory operations. “As a global consumer food company, food safety is our highest priority at General Mills. This partnership helps us build and connect more broadly with food safety leaders around the world in advancing our shared goal of strengthening and improving food safety worldwide.”

”Ecolab is dedicated to making the world a cleaner, safer, healthier place,” said Katherine Swanson, vice president of Ecolab Food Safety. “GIFSL provides a critical leadership network of key stakeholders from government, industry, and academia to act together to identify needs and harmonized approaches for enhanced food safety globally, and we are proud to be a sponsor and participant.”

The group began its intensive program with two days in Rome at the FAO focusing on international food safety standards. It toured a Cargill oilseed crushing facility near Amsterdam and met with Dutch officials and industry representatives, followed by two days in Washington, D.C., with multiple government agencies, industry associations and news media.

This scientific and policy exchange program is the second in a five-year program GIFSL has committed to providing for the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspections and Quarantine (AQSIQ), a government agency of the People’s Republic of China. AQSIQ took the lead in organizing participation from industries, academic and government agencies, which included AQSIQ, Ministry Of Health(MOH), State Food and Drug Administration(SFDA) , State Administration for Industry and Commerce(SAIC), State Administration for Certification and Accreditation(CNCA) and State Administration for Standardization(SAC).

-University of Minnesota News





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