Story: Della Russel Ocloo
The Ministry of Trade and Industry in collaboration with the International Trade Centre (ITC) has intensified an industrial sensitisation programme on food safety compliance.
The programme, a component two of the private sector development programmes, is aimed at maximising export performance through the implementation of food safety and security management in the agro-business sector.
It is also intended to strengthen the capacities of African intermediary organisations such as the National Standards Bodies (NSBs) to act as national focal points to assist small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) in ensuring that their food exports meet the mandatory required technical specifications applicable in their targeted markets.
Participants were drawn from selected food processing industries, Ghana Standards Board (GSB), the European Union (EU), Food and Drugs Board (FDB), National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) and SMEs.
It was on the theme; “Joining forces to empower the African private sector network to strengthen the international competitiveness of small and medium scale enterprises”.
The organisers contend that, food safety and security would have dire consequences on world trade if compliance to standards are under-estimated.
Speaking at the sensitisation programme, the Minister of Trade and Industry, Ms Hannah Tetteh indicated that Ghanaian businesses were exporting to the most sophisticated markets.
meanwhile, she said markets all over the world had become so conscious that, end products ought to have a standardised safety compliance in place to avoid being blacklisted.
The Programme Co-ordinator of ITC, Dr Namrata Pandita Wakhaloo, explained that globalisation had seen manufacturing industries across Africa faced with unprecedented competitive challenges, noting that for industries to successfully compete in the domestic and international markets, the production of quality products and services was necessary.
“There are numerous cases where products were refused entry to EU markets, the United States of America and other international markets, due to poor quality and non-compliance to international standards”, Dr Wakhaloo said.
She, therefore, urged Ghana’s agro-business enterprises to partner the GSB and its stakeholders to implement food safety and security measures.
Earlier in her welcome address, the acting Deputy Executive Director in charge of core services at the GSB, Mrs Elizabeth Adetola, tasked managers in the food industry to understand the various sanitary and phytosanitary regulations which, she said, had a bearing on food safety.
She was optimistic that the programme would maximise market access for food products by helping SMEs meet the increasing stringent standards required by exporting markets.
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