P1254325918CFqAd

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Arab Quality and Food Safety Conference Beirut 15
June 2006
Food Safety, Risk and Regulation the UK
experience
Dr. George Paterson Director Food Standards
Agency, Scotland
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Food incidents in the UK - 1980s 1990s
1988 Salmonella in eggs 1989 Listeria in soft
cheese and pate 1990 BSE mounting
concern 1990 Benzene in Perrier 1990
Plasticisers in cling film 1993 Patulin in
apple juice 1996 E coli O157 outbreak 1996
BSE linked to vCJD
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• Food Standards Agency core values
• to put consumers first
• to be open and accessible
• to be an independent voice

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Government, and not its advisory committees, is
responsiblefor taking decisions on the
management of risk, and needs to take an abiding
interest in matters of risk, although committees
may be best placed to advise on management
options
Review of risk procedures by the Governments
advisory committees dealing with food safety
Sir Robert May, Chief Scientific Advisor, July
2000
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The Food Standards Agency will...
...review the current main measures to protect
the public against BSE/vCJD in relation to the
food chain. The review will consider both the
adequacy of the measures to protect public health
and their proportionality to the assessed risk..
Strategy for agriculture An action plan for
farming Dept Environment Food and
Rural Affairs 30 March 2000
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UK public concern about BSE 2000 -2005
Source FSA annual consumer attitudes surveys
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Media
Food industry
Other food agencies
Working with others
Europe
Regional government
Other gov depts
NGOs
Schools
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Food safety management
Safer food better business helps small food
businesses apply HACCP principles
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Foodborne Illness

• Around 850,000 cases per year
• Estimated to cost UK plc 1.5bn pa
• 5 main causative organisms
• Campylobacter
• Salmonella
• Listeria
• Clostridium Perf.
• E.coli O157

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Is our approach working?

• 80 Recognition
• 65 Confident in ability to protect health
• 58 Consider FSA trustworthyConsumer Attitudes
  to Food Standards 2005

UK has highest consumer trust in food safety of
six EU countries studied Trust in Food in
Europe, NICR, Oslo 2003
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A harmonised approach to food safety

• Put consumers first
• Base decisions on a robust assessment of the
  evidence
• Take full account of the views of all interested
  parties
• Communicate clearly what we know and what we
  dont know and this is what we are doing about it
• Work in partnership with others
• Remain open, transparent and independent at all
  times