PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Food Safety and Halal Food Authority will begin operation in the provincial capital and divisional headquarters today (Wednesday).

FSHFA director general Riaz Mehsud told Dawn that a notification would be issued on Wednesday saying the food, health and district administrations in the provincial capital and divisional headquarters would no more have anything to do with food standards and hygiene related issues.

“The food standards and hygiene-related issues will the sole responsibility of the FSHFA in Peshawar and divisional headquarters after that notification,” he said.

Though the KP Assembly had passed the Food Safety Authority Act in 2014, the authority existed on paper.

With one official after another holding the post of its DG, nothing was done to make the authority functional during the last four years. Mr Mehsud said when he was made the FSHFA director general in Sept last year, he had no office and staff.

“I was the only employee of the authority and was tasked with setting up the authority from scratch,” he said.

He said he had been able to operationalise the authority only after overcoming the issues and hurdles involved since Nov last.

“Now, we are in a position to start routine work of the FSHFA,” he said.

The FSHFA DG said the authority had set up offices at the provincial divisional level with necessary equipment and labs, staff members and legislations and rules.

“In the first phase, we’re launching the authority in the provincial capital and divisional headquarters, including Mingora, Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, Kohat, Abbottabad and Mardan, and in the next, it will be extended to the district level across the province,” he said.

He said during the initial phase, they also recruited 200 people including food scientists, nutritionists, administrative officers and other supporting staff.

Mr Mehsud said the authority’s offices in Peshawar would be headed by a deputy director, while each of the four towns would be looked after by an assistant director and four nutritionists and food scientists.

He said seven static and seven mobile labs had also been established to check dairy products, while an appellate lab would also be set up for other purposes.

The FSHFA DG said the authority’s staff members had undergone necessary training and were ready to discharge their respective duties.

He said the government had allocated Rs37.8 million to set up the authority and of the money, Rs11 million was spent to procure IT equipment, Rs6.6 million to buy furniture and Rs17.5 million to set up offices.

The FSHFA DG said the authority would strive to implement food standards and ensure hygiene, register general stores and mega marts, and ensure the provision of quality milk and meat to the people.

He said awareness sessions in that respect were held for traders, and more such sessions were planned in future.

Published in Dawn, March 21st, 2018