M'sia to propose establishment of common certification on food safety for Asean

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia will propose to Asean to establish a common certification on food safety in the region.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said the common certification was an accreditation that provides food export opportunities to Asean member states for greater access to the world market.
"With one certification, you can go to many countries in the world without any worries. Otherwise, you have to deal with every country with every standard which might vary from one another. That would make a lot of economic sense.
"I will present the proposal in the Asean Health Ministers meeting in Brunei in a couple of months," he said after launching the Asean Risk Assessment Centre for Food Safety (ARAC) here today.
He added the commonality would ensure Asean interests and its unique needs were taken into consideration in the development of global standard without creating unnecessary, unjustified or discriminatory obstacles to food exports of Asean countries.
He said the establishment of ARAC in Malaysia, which provides independent food safety risk assessment to assess food safety issues of common interest to the region, would be one of the steps moving towards having a common certification. — Bernama