45 seafood exporters get safe processing certification

THE Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) has issued Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) compliance certificates to 45 companies in the country. HACCP certification is issued for safe and sanitary processing of seafood products.

The Technical Officer of MPEDA, Mr V.I. George, told Business Line here on Wednesday that most of these companies are situated in Kochi, Mumbai and Vishakhapatnam regions. This certificate benefits a lot to the seafood exporters, he said. Asked about the quality of Indian seafood export companies, he said that nearly 40 to 50 of them were on par with the international ones.

He said MPEDA had certified 165 HACCP manuals till July this year. In March 2000, the Union Government notified MPEDA as one of the agencies for HACCP certification.

Mr George was the resource person at a workshop on "HACCP verification and audit." The workshop was organised by the sub-regional office of the MPEDA here for the personnel of seafood industry in Karnataka.

He said the implementation of HACCP system has been made mandatory for seafood processors in the country. Under the HACCP verification, every processor has to verify that the HACCP plan followed by his/her company is adequate to control the food safety hazards.

Mr George said HACCP verification and audit programme is based on ISO 19011:2002 standards. MPEDA is the first organisation in the country to have incorporated ISO 19011 standards for the audit of HACCP system in the food industry. He said that 1,175 technologists and quality control personnel have been trained in 44 such programmes.

Source: Business Line, September 8' 2004